FEB  19  1901 


THE   CLERGY 


IN 


AMERICAN    LIFE   AND   LETTERS 


National  ^tutiieg  in  American 

GEORGE  EDWARD  WOODBERRY,  EDITOR. 


OLD  CAMBRIDGE. 

By  THOMAS  WENTWORTH  HIGGINSON. 

BROOK   FARM. 

By  LINDSAY  SWIFT. 

THE    HOOSIERS. 

By  MEREDITH  NICHOLSON. 

THE   CLERGY   IN    AMERICAN    LIFE  AND 
LETTERS. 

By  THE  REV.  DANIEL  DULANY  ADDISON. 

IN    PREPARATION. 
THE  AMERICAN    HISTORICAL   NOVEL. 

By  PAUL  LEICESTER  FORD. 

THE    KNICKERBOCKERS. 
By  THE  REV.  HENRY  VAN  DYKE,  D.D. 

SOUTHERN    HUMORISTS. 

By  JOHN  KENDRICK  BANGS. 

FLOWER   OF   ESSEX. 

By  THE  EDITOR. 

Others  to  be  announced. 


THE  CLERGY 


IN 


AMERICAN  LIFE  AND  LETTERS 


BY 

DANIEL   DULANY  ADDISON 


THE    MACMILLAN    COMPANY 

LONDON:  MACMILLAN  &  CO.,  LTD. 
1900 

All  rights  reserved 


COPYRIGHT,  1900, 
BY  THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY. 


J.  S.  Gushing  &  Co.  -  Berwick  &.  Smith 
Norwood  Mass.  U.S.A. 


TO   THE   MEMORY   OF 

jfftS  Jatjjer 

THOMAS   GRAFTON   ADDISON 

FOR   MORE  THAN   A   QUARTER   OF   A    CENTURY 
A  PREACHER   OF    RIGHTEOUSNESS 


PREFACE 

THE  object  of  this  book  is  to  present  the 
literary  work  of  the  American  clergy  in  its  two 
fold  aspect  as  the  expression  of  religious  life 
and  national  thought.  A  study  of  the  more 
varied  influence  of  the  clergy  on  American  life 
is  a  necessary  introduction  to  a  consideration  of 
their  influence  in  American  letters,  because  their 
literary  activity  was  so  frequently  the  natural 
outcome  of  the  life  and  thought  habitual  to  them. 
Contained  in  their  discourses  and  sermons  is 
often  to  be  found  the  essence  of  their  intel 
lectual  life,  and,  in  the  institutions  they  founded, 
the  accomplishment  of  their  ideas  for  the  im 
provement  of  the  people.  Among  their  political 
orations,  also,  are  some  of  the  most  important 
examples  of  this  form  of  literature,  in  which  the 
clergy  recorded  their  opinions  on  the  national 
questions  of  the  day,  and  exercised  their  influ 
ence  on  American  thinking. 

In  dealing  with  a  field  so  broad,  a  freedom  of 


Vlll 


PREFACE 


treatment  has  been  used  in  certain  parts,  nota 
bly  in  the  chapter  on  "  The  Clergy  in  American 
Life,"  which  seemed  more  suitable  than  a  formal 
and  technical  study;  and  in  the  chapter  on 
"  Denominational  Literature  "  the  limit  of  space 
has  made  it  necessary  to  condense  the  refer 
ences  to  some  important  men.  The  book  does 
not  aim  to  be  either  exhaustive  or  encyclopaedic, 
but  to  give  a  general  view  of  the  literary  work 
of  those  who,  by  their  religious  calling,  may 
be  included  in  the  term  "the  clergy."  It  was 
thought  that  this  could  best  be  done  by  treat 
ing  in  sketches  typical  clergymen  who  were  lit 
erary  men,  and  then  making  a  more  extended 
examination  of  the  most  important  writers, — 
Dwight,  Channing,  Parker,  Bushnell,  Beecher, 
and  Brooks,  who  by  their  work  would  illustrate 
the  whole  subject. 

Sufficient  biographical  material  has  been  in 
troduced  to  give  a  background  to  the  purely 
literary  analysis.  No  attempt  has  been  made 
to  enter  into  theological  discussion  or  criticism. 
Religious  references  occur  only  when  rendered 
necessary  because  of  the  theological  character 
of  the  books  that  are  examined. 


PREFACE  ix 

In  the  main  it  has  been  the  plan  of  the 
author  to  follow  the  suggestion  of  the  editor 
of  this  Series  to  tell  the  story  of  the  influence 
upon  American  life  and  letters  of  the  clergy 
during  the  national  era  of  American  literature. 
Little  attention,  therefore,  has  been  given  to  the 
clergy  who  lived  before  the  Revolution. 

D.  D.  A. 

BROOKLINE,  MASS., 
September  i,  1900. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGK 

I.      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LIFE    ...  I 

II.      EARLY  WRITERS   AND    HISTORIANS             .            .  39 

III.  POETRY   AND   ROMANCE              ....  84 

IV.  DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE        .            .  113 
V.      TIMOTHY   DWIGHT 157 

VI.      WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  .  .  .191 

VII.      THEODORE   PARKER 229 

VIII.      HORACE   BUSHNELL 268 

IX.  HENRY  WARD   BEECHER             ....  304 

X.  PHILLIPS    BROOKS 34! 


•UNIVERSITY 

.  ^.  4 

THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LIFE 
AND   LETTERS 

CHAPTER   I 

THE    CLERGY    IN    AMERICAN    LIFE 

LOWELL,  in    his    Harvard  address,  spoke   of 
the   parson    in   the   olden   time  as  being  what 
his  name  implied  — the   chief  person  of  every 
community.     This  foremost  place  was  occupied 
by  him  without  a  rival  in  the  colonial  period, 
and    even   far  into  the  national    era.     In  rural 
districts,    especially  in    New    England,  he  was 
the  most  loved  of  men,  and  at  times  the  most 
feared.     This   autocratic   position   often    devel 
oped   rugged  types  of  men  who   by  reason    of 
their   long    settlement  became  privileged  char 
acters.     There  is  hardly  a  town  that  does  not 
have  a  tradition  of  some  strong  minister  about 
whom  humorous  tales  were  told.     Of  one  it  was 
sung  after  his  death  — 

"  Young  to  the  pulpit  he  did  get 
And  seventy-two  years  in't  did  sweat." 


2  THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

It  was  long  remembered  that  Mather  Byles, 
in  turning  over  the  hour-glass  during  a  very 
lengthy  sermon,  remarked,  "  Now,  my  hearers, 
we  will  take  another  glass."  Sometimes  the 
peculiarities  of  the  parson  were  as  marked 
as  those  of  the  Rev.  Joseph  Moody,  com 
monly  called  "  handkerchief  Moody,"  the  per 
son  who  suggested  to  Hawthorne  his  story  of 
"The  Minister's  Black  Veil."  Mr.  Moody 
usually  shrouded  his  face  with  a  black  hand 
kerchief.  When  reading  a  sermon  he  would 
lift  the  veil,  but  turn  his  back  to  the  people  so 
that  they  could  not  see  his  face.  Sometimes 
the  benevolence  of  the  minister  was  like  that 
of  Mr.  Eaton  of  Harpswell,  Maine,  who  carried 
in  his  saddle-bags,  on  his  pastoral  visits,  lancets 
and  medical  supplies,  and  thus  became  the 
welcome  guest  of  the  parents,  but  the  terror 
of  the  children. 

The  awe  with  which  the  clergyman  was 
regarded  reached  a  climax  on  the  Sabbath 
morning,  when  he  proceeded  to  the  meeting 
house  for  worship,  as  in  the  case  of  Rev. 
Mr.  French  of  Andover.  "The  whole  space 
before  the  meeting-house,"  says  Josiah  Quincy, 


THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LIFE  3 

as  he  recalled  the  incident,  "was  filled  with 
a  waiting,  respectful,  and  expecting  multitude. 
At  the  moment  of  service  the  pastor  issued 
from  his  mansion  with  Bible  and  manuscript 
sermon  under  his  arm,  with  his  wife  leaning  on 
one  arm,  flanked  by  his  negro  man  on  his  side, 
as  his  wife  was  by  her  negro  woman,  the 
little  negroes  being  distributed,  according  to 
sex,  by  the  side  of  their  respective  parents." 
When  the  discourse  was  concluded,  sometimes 
called  by  admiring  friends  "a  large,  nervous, 
and  golden  discourse,"  the  minister  went  back 
to  the  regular  life  of  the  manse,  which  means 
that  he  often  worked  in  his  garden,  and  sawed 
wood,  and  mingled  with  the  people  on  terms 
of  friendly  interest.  Within  the  parsonage  or 
manse,  or  in  the  South  the  rectory,  there  was 
a  wholesome,  intellectual  life,  deepened  often 
by  a  manly  religion. 

From  out  of  these  ministers'  homes,  where 
large  questions  were  of  daily  concern,  and 
a  visit  from  a  neighboring  parson  meant  a 
solid  argument  or  a  sprightly  conversation, 
have  issued  some  of  America's  best  men,  as 
statesmen  and  writers  of  literature.  The  only 


4  THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

library  of  any  size  in  th-e  community  was  ir 
the  parson's  house.  Nor  were  the  books  onl} 
calf-bound,  theological  treatises.  Locke  "  Or 
Government "  was  sometimes  squeezed  be 
tween  Johnson's  "  Lives  of  the  Poets "  anc 
Butler's  "  Hudibras."  Milton  and  a  stray  vol 
ume  of  Shakespeare  might  be  occasionally  seer 
wedged  in  between  a  series  of  election  ser 
mons.  These  books  were  often  thumbed  b] 
the  minister's  boys,  and  loaned  to  other  in 
quiring  lads.  Not  the  least  gift  of  the  Ameri 
can  clergy  has  been  the  training  of  theii 
sons.  It  can  never  be  forgotten  that  th( 
ancestors  of  Emerson  had  been  ministers  foi 
five  generations ;  his  own  grandfather  ren 
dered  signal  service  to  the  state  by  encourag 
ing  his  parishioners  at  the  fight  over  Concorc 
Bridge  in  1775,  and  died  of  fever  later,  on  hii 
way  with  the  soldiers  to  Ticonderoga.  Ii 
was  from  the  home  of  old  Dr.  Lowell  thai 
James  Russell  Lowell  started  upon  his  public 
career  to  enrich  American  letters  and  to  ele 
vate  political  thinking.  Oliver  Wendell  Holmej 
was  prepared  to  take  his  place  among  the 
cheerful  singers  in  the  parsonage  of  his  father 


THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LIFE  5 

Dr.  Abiel    Holmes,    near   the  college  in  Cam 
bridge. 

In  order  to  educate  their  own  children,  the 
clergy  often,  because  of  the  smallness  of  their 
stipends,    taught    school.       The    Rev.    Abijah 
Weld   of   Attleborough    had    a    salary    of    two 
hundred   and    fifty  dollars  a  year,  but  he  suc 
ceeded  in  rearing  a  family  of  eleven  children  ; 
and    some  of   his   brother   ministers    increased 
their  families  to  two  or  three  times  that  num 
ber  by  taking  the  neighbors'  children  as  pupils. 
These  little  clerical  schools  were  specially  fitted 
to  give  a  sound  foundation  of  learning,  and  incul 
cate  a  piety  that  is  at  the  basis  of  strong  charac 
ter.     It  is  related  that  the  venerable  Moses  Hal- 
lock    educated,  in   his  own   family,  over   three 
hundred  young  people;  and  among  the  pupils 
that  Dr.  Wood  of  Boscawen,  New  Hampshire, 
trained  for  college,  were  two  of  his  parishion 
ers,    Ezekiel    and    Daniel    Webster.       Patrick 
Henry  was   always   ready  to    acknowledge   his 
debt  for  instruction  and  inspiration  to  Samuel 
Davies,  whose  style  of  eloquence  in  the  pulpit 
was   the   model    that    he   adopted    in    his    own 
great  speeches.     Timothy   Dwight  established 


6  THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

a  school  at  Northampton,  and  afterward  con 
tinued  it  for  many  years  at  Greenfield,  Con 
necticut. 

The  efforts  of  the  clergy  in  education  are 
seen  most  fully  in  the  founding  and  sustain 
ing  of  colleges  and  higher  institutions  of  learn 
ing.  Here  they  have  rendered  to  literature 
the  greatest  service.  These  institutions  have 
been  the  breeding-ground  of  the  best  men  of 
America.  Even  among  self-made  men  the  col 
lege  has  been  a  powerful  element  for  education, 
because  the  very  books  from  which  they  learned, 
when  following  the  plough  or  reading  by  the 
light  of  the  wood  fire,  were  written  under  the 
shadow  of  the  universities.  The  college  has 
almost  invariably  furnished  the  tools,  without 
which  the  strongest  native  genius  would  be  a 
mute  statesman  or  a  tuneless  bard. 

The  clerical  graduates  of  Cambridge,  Eng 
land,  were  responsible  for  the  founding  of  Har 
vard  College  in  1636 ;  and  the  Rev.  James 
Blair,  in  1693,  may  be  called  the  father  of  Will 
iam  and  Mary  College.  The  clergy  have  been 
vigorous  supporters  of  the  American  colleges 
as  they  gradually  came  into  being  :  Yale  in 


THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LIFE  7 

1700,    Princeton    in    1746,    Columbia   in    1754, 
Brown  in    1764,   Dartmouth   in    1759,    Rutgers 
in  1770,  and  the  many  others  that  have  come  to 
enrich  American  life.     The  names  of  many  of 
the  great  college  presidents  were  those  of  minis 
ters  whose  strong  personalities  and  attainments 
were  impressed  upon  the  institutions  for  genera 
tions.      Not    to    mention    the    colonial    college 
presidents,  it  is  sufficient  to  recall  Ezra  Stiles, 
Timothy   Dwight,    and    Noah    Porter   of   Yale, 
Eliphalet  Nott  of  Union,  Francis  Wayland  of 
Brown,  James  McCosh  of  Princeton,  and  Mark 
Hopkins    of    Williams.      These    were    men    of 
administrative  ability,  with  great  personal  mag 
netism,  wise  in  judgment,  and  looked  upon  as 
heroes  in  their  clay.     Many  a  young  man  dated 
his  success  in  life  from  a  conversation  in  the 
study  of  one  of  these  college  presidents.     They 
had  different  methods  of   discipline,  but  they 
were  all  moved  by  the  same  impulse,  —  the  de 
sire  to  prepare  young  men  who  should  do  a  man's 
work  in  the  world.     Though  this  type  of  presi 
dent  may  not  be  needed  in   the  modern   uni 
versity,    it    must    be    remembered    how    those 
men  made  possible  the  institutions  that   have 


8          THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

grown  so  extensively  since  their  day.  The  col 
lege  sermon  of  the  president,  coming  from  a 
man  whom  the  students  trusted,  had  no  little 
influence  in  moulding  their  thought ;  and  when 
this  was  enforced  by  a  word  of  personal  encour 
agement,  or  warning  privately  given,  one  can 
well  understand  why  the  alumni  regarded  the 
college  president  as  the  father  of  their  intel 
lectual  and  spiritual  life. 

The  clerical  control  of  colleges  has  not  al 
ways  been  an  untempered  blessing.  Enforced 
attendance  on  religious  services,  compulsory 
subscription  to  forms  of  belief,  as  well  as  a 
minute  inspection  of  conduct,  with  petty  rules 
and  methods  of  discipline,  have  often  retarded 
the  normal  growth  of  a  free  manhood.  A 
conservatism  which  feared  innovations  often 
barred  the  way  to  progress.  The  spell  of  the 
classics  was  probably  prolonged  by  those  who 
read  the  Old  Testament  in  Hebrew,  the  New 
Testament  in  Greek,  and  the  Church  Fathers 
in  Latin.  But  there  has  always  been  a  pro 
gressive  as  well  as  a  conservative  clerical 
element.  The  conservative  clergy  were  doubt 
less  disturbed  by  the  liberal  tendencies  of  the 


THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN  LIFE  9 

colleges,  but  the  consent  of  the  broad-minded 
ministers  was  gladly  given  to  reforms.  Mr. 
Henry  Adams,  in  his  "  History  of  the  United 
States,"  referring  to  this  element  says,  "with 
out  the  moral  and  material  aid  of  this  clerical 
body,  which  contained  several  hundred  of  the 
most  respectable  citizens  clad  in  every  town 
with  the  authority  of  spiritual  magistrates,  the 
college  would  have  found  itself  bankrupt  in 
means  and  character." 

The  clergy  have  naturally,  in  their  preaching, 
dealt  with  questions  of  public  interest  when 
these  have  involved  what  they  considered  moral 
issues.  Christianity  applied  to  contemporary 
conditions  has  been  a  favorite  theme.  In  the 
colonial  days  this  application  of  religion  to  life 
was  interpreted  to  be  a  careful  oversight  of 
the  daily  lives  of  the  people.  The  clergy  were 
then  practical  magistrates,  and  scored  the  of 
fenders  by  public  announcement  as  well  as 
by  private  advice.  They  were  also  as  deeply 
interested  in  political  questions  as  in  moral 
ones,  and  used  every  occasion  —  the  Sabbath 
worship  and  the  special  anniversary,  Fast  Day 
and  election-sermon  time  —  for  laying  down,  not 


IO         THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

general  principles  only,  to  be  vaguely  applied 
by  the  people,  but  for  entering  boldly  the  arena 
of  political  strife.  Such  civic  activity  was  to 
be  expected  from  the  American  clergy,  for  the 
traditions  of  their  English  ancestors  were  those 
of  warfare  waged  with  the  sermon  and  the 
tract,  as  also  with  the  spear  and  sword.  The 
state  controversies  in  England  had  been  a  mix 
ture  of  politics  and  religion;  and  with  this 
traditional  justification  for  discussion,  the  clergy 
entered  vigorously  into  the  debate  of  the  hour. 
In  New  England  especially,  the.  minister,  in 
his  three-cornered  hat,  dressed  in  small-clothes, 
carrying  a  gold-headed  cane,  was  the  village 
oracle  when  he  entered  the  private  door  or 
outlined  a  political  duty.  The  clergy  in  no 
other  part  of  the  country  exercised  the  same 
kind  of  influence.  In  Virginia,  though  for  the 
early  period  the  Church  of  England  was  estab 
lished,  and  the  clergy,  with  exceptions  known 
as  the  fox-hunting  parsons,  were  often  men  of 
education  and  force  of  character,  they  did  not 
exercise  much  direct  control  in  political  matters. 
In  Pennsylvania  and  New  York,  the  Quakers, 
the  Dutch,  and  the  Presbyterians  were  never 


THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LIFE  II 

backward  in  expressing  themselves  on  moral 
and  political  issues.  When  the  Revolution 
came,  however,  and  independence  was  secured, 
the  clergy  from  every  part  of  the  country, 
unless  they  were  Tories,  used  their  voices  and 
their  pens  in  the  common  cause  of  American 
freedom.  The  same  love  for  their  country 
made  them  freely  preach  the  truth  as  they 
saw  it  during  the  Federalist  and  Republican 
struggle  for  the  mastery  in  the  War  of  1812, 
the  Missouri  Compromise,  the  antislavery  agita 
tion,  and  the  events  that  led  up  to  the  Civil 
War,  as  well  as  during  that  war,  and  in  later 
times.  The  clergy  have  always  looked  upon 
themselves  as  citizens  of  the  land  with  the 
same  right  as  others  to  join  in  the  discus 
sion  of  public  questions  ;  and  whenever  these 
questions  have  had  a  moral  bearing,  they  have 
felt  it  a  duty  not  to  keep  silent. 

As  striking  an  illustration  of  American  politi 
cal  preaching  as  can  be  found  is  contained  in 
the  long  series  of  Massachusetts  election  ser 
mons  from  1634  to  1884.  The  leading  clergy 
men  of  New  England  were  honored  by  the 
appointment  as  preachers  before  the  General 


12         THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Court.  While  some  dealt  lightly  with  the 
burning  issues,  many  of  the  clerical  orators 
boldly  spoke  to  the  times.  Many  a  phrase  let 
fall  in  the  early  sermons  became  prophetic  of 
coming  events,  as  when  Thomas  Shepard,  in 
1672,  taking  "  Eye-salve"  as  his  subject, 
urged  the  establishment  of  "  Free  Schools 
where  poor  Scholars  might  there  be  educated 
by  some  Publick  Stock."  At  another  time  the 
phrase  "  Democracy  is  Christ's  government  in 
Church  and  State "  clung  to  the  memories  of 
men.  In  his  optimism,  one  trusted  that  God  will 
apply  a  "  Sanative  Cataplasm,  an  healing  Plas 
ter,"  and  looked  upon  the  new  land  of  America 
as  a  place  planted  with  the  seed  for  which 
"  God  sifted  a  whole  nation  that  he  might 
send  Choice  Grain  over  into  this  wilderness." 
The  preachers,  nevertheless,  discerned  the  evils 
of  the  age  and  poured  forth  upon  them  the  min 
gled  fury  from  more  than  seven  vials  of  wrath, 
using  such  words  as  "  epanalepsis,"  "horren 
dous,"  and  "brizzils."  When  the  French  and 
Indian  wars  were  settled,  the  Lord  was 
thanked  for  sweeping  "away  thousands  of 
those  salvage  Tawnies  with  a  mortal  Plague,  to 


THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LIFE  13 

make  room  for  a  better  people."  When  signs 
of  the  Revolution  began  to  multiply,  among  its 
first  heralds  were  Jonathan  Mayhew  and  Sam 
uel  Cooke,  who,  in  1770,  laid  down  "The  True 
Principles  of  Civil  Government."  Constant 
references  were  made  to  the  "absurd  and  ex 
ploded  doctrines  of  passive  obedience  and  non- 
resistance";  and  when  the  actual  conflict  was 
on,  the  preachers  were  unfailing  in  their  ap 
peals  to  patriotism,  asserting  at  times,  "  It  is 
better  to  be  free  among  the  dead,  than  slaves 
among  the  living." 

The  interest  in  slavery  is  early  reflected  in 
these  sermons;  but  as  the  Civil  War  drew  near, 
the  subject  seems  to  have  been  avoided.  This, 
however,  is  not  an  evidence  of  fear  on  the  part 
of  the  ministers,  for  in  many  other  ways,  and 
on  other  occasions,  they  let  their  opinions  be 
known,  and  worked  strenuously  for  emancipa 
tion  ;  it  is  rather  a  sign  of  their  self-restraint 
and  a  desire  to  use  the  special  election  ser 
mon  for  other  purposes.  The  importance  of  the 
annual  sermon  at  a  later  period  was  not  so  great 
as  it  had  been.  There  were  many  other  forces 
at  work,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  any  good  result 


14        THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

would  have  been  accomplished  by  a  partisan  ser 
mon  delivered  before  the  General  Court.  For 
the  last  fifty  years  of  the  existence  of  the  cus 
tom,  the  discourses  deal  more  than  previously 
with  ethical  and  social  and  philosophic  ques 
tions.  Doctrinal  and  even  political  discus 
sions  were  giving  way  before  the  steady  rise 
of  the  social  movements  which  occupy  such 
an  important  place  in  our  modern  world. 
Temperance,  the  rights  of  the  laborer,  the 
administration  of  charities,  the  duties  of  the 
strong  to  the  weak,  the  need  of  hospitals 
and  proper  care  for  the  insane  and  prisoners, 
were  the  themes  treated.  Such  a  selection  of 
topics  was  as  much  a  sign  of  the  times  as 
was  the  dogmatism  of  Puritan  days,  or  the 
Federalist  preaching  of  the  War  of  1812.  The 
cause  of  the  people  was  being  heard.  A  Chris 
tianity  of  the  daily  life  was  beginning  to  take 
the  place  of  a  Christianity  for  the  special  occa 
sion  and  the  political  crisis. 

These  indications  in  the  election  sermon  of 
the  interest  of  the  clergy  in  state  and  national 
affairs  were  also  to  be  found  in  the  various 
towns  and  parishes.  For  evidence  of  this  it  is 


THE  CLERGY  IN    AMERICAN   LIFE  15 

not  necessary  to  go  back  into  the  colonial  days 
when  the  official  magistracy  of  the  ministers 
was  recognized,  and  they  served  as  colonial 
agents  to  England,  John  Norton  going  over  in 
1662,  and  Increase  Mather  helping  to  procure 
the  Provincial  Charter  of  1694.  The  history 
of  the  clergy  during  the  Revolution  is  in  the 
main  that  of  patriotic  men,  who  believed  in 
the  cause  of  the  colonies,  and  who  urged  upon 
the  people  the  duties  of  resistance  and  the 
wisdom  of  establishing  a  confederacy  of  states. 
At  the  time  of  the  Revolution  there  were  the 
two  well-defined  parties,  the  Tories  and  the 
Whigs  —  those  who  believed  in  submission  to 
England  and  those  who  were  for  rebellion.  It 
was  natural  to  find  some  of  the  clergy  in  each 
party ;  and  it  is  a  fact  that  in  the  various 
churches  in  different  sections  of  the  country 
there  were  those  loyal  to  King  George  and 
those  loyal  to  Congress.  The  Tory  element 
was  not  confined  to  any  particular  church, 
though  perhaps  the  greatest  number  of  Tory 
ministers  was  found  in  the  branch  of  the 
Church  of  England,  in  the  colonies  known  as 
the  Episcopal  Church.  Episcopalians,  how- 


1 6        THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN  LETTERS 

ever,  both  clergymen  and  laymen,  were  among 
the  foremost  of  the  patriots ;  but  there  were 
members  of  both  orders  who  felt  it  their  duty 
to  return  to  the  mother  country.  As  many  of 
the  Episcopal  clergy  in  New  England  withdrew, 
leaving  in  Massachusetts  only  two  who  re 
tained  their  parishes  during  the  war,  —  Edward 
Bass  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  Newburyport,  and 
Samuel  Parker,  of  Trinity  Church,  Boston,  — 
the  impression  went  abroad  in  that  section  that 
all  of  the  Episcopalians  were  disloyal  to  the 
Revolutionary  cause.  A  great  many  more  than 
a  majority  of  the  signers  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence  were  Episcopalians,  while  Wash 
ington,  Hamilton,  Marshall,  and  many  of  the 
most  prominent  generals  and  statesmen  be 
longed  to  the  same  church.  It  was  the  Rev. 
M.  Duche  who  opened,  in  a  most  impressive 
manner,  the  session  of  the  Continental  Con 
gress  in  Philadelphia  in  1774.  John  Adams, 
writing  to  his  wife  about  this  service,  described 
the  clergyman  in  his  robes  as  he  read  the 
collects  and  the  psalter  for  the  seventh  day, 
it  being  September  ;  further  stating  that  "  Mr. 
Duche",  unexpectedly  to  everybody,  struck  out 


THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LIFE  I/ 

into  an  extempore  prayer,  which  filled  the 
bosom  of  every  man  present.  I  must  confess 
I  never  heard  a  better  prayer,  or  one  so  well 
pronounced.  Episcopalian  as  he  is,  Dr.  Cooper 
himself  never  prayed  with  such  fervor  —  such 
ardor  —  such  earnestness  and  pathos  —  and  in 
language  so  elegant  and  sublime  —  for  America, 
for  Congress,  for  the  Province  of  Massachusetts 
Bay  and  especially  for  Boston.  It  has  an  excel 
lent  effect  upon  everybody  here."  William 
White,  afterward  bishop  of  Pennsylvania,  was 
at  one  time  chaplain  of  Congress  ;  and  William 
Smith,  a  learned  and  eloquent  Episcopal  divine, 
preached  often  to  the  troops  in  Philadelphia, 
and  celebrated  in  appropriate  sermons,  since  col 
lected  into  important  volumes,  the  successive 
victories  of  the  Revolution. 

One  of  the  most  valuable  contributions  to 
the  organization  of  the  colonies  for  consulta 
tion  and  defence  was  a  suggestion  made  by  a 
minister,  Jonathan  Mayhew,  the  brilliant  and 
fearless  preacher  of  Boston.  The  origin  of 
the  proposal  for  the  concerted  action  of  the 
colonies  is  told  in  a  letter  from  Mayhew  to 
James  Otis,  written  on  the  Lord's  Day,  June  8, 
c 


1 8         THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

1766.  "You  have  heard  of  the  communion  of 
churches"  he  wrote,  "and  I  am  to  set  out  to 
morrow  morning  for  Rutland,  to  assist  at  an 
ecclesiastical  council,  not  expecting  to  return 
this  week;  while  I  was  thinking  of  this  in  my 
bed,  the  great  use  and  importance  of  a  com 
munion  of  colonies  appeared  to  me  in  a  strong 
light,  which  led  me  immediately  to  set  down 
these  hints  to  transmit  to  you."  With  such 
an  illustration  of  the  fertility  of  suggestion  on 
the  part  of  the  clergy  before  them,  it  is  no 
Bonder  that  the  First  Provincial  Congress  of 
Massachusetts  in  1774  addressed  a  petition 
to  the  clergy  to  aid  them  in  securing  the  ad 
herence  of  the  people  to  the  enactments  of 
Congress.  The  petition  reads,  "  That  they 
assist  us  in  avoiding  that  dreadful  slavery  with 
which  we  are  now  threatened  by  advising  the 
people  of  their  several  congregations,  as  they 
wish  their  prosperity,  to  abide  by  and  strictly 
adhere  to  the  resolutions  of  the  Continental 
Congress." 

The  clergy  responded  in  their  usual  way,  at 
first  by  sermons  and  pamphlets,  and  then 
when  the  shots  were  fired,  by  enlistment  both 


THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LIFE  19 

as  common  soldiers  and  chaplains.  Even  in 
the  midst  of  the  enemy  they  were  mindful  of 
their  duty.  It  is  related  of  a  minister  of  New 
Haven,  during  the  British  occupation,  that, 
when  ordered  to  offer  prayers  for  the  king,  he 
obeyed  by  praying,  "O  Lord,  bless  thy  ser 
vant,  King  George,  and  grant  unto  him  wis 
dom ;  for  Thou  knowest,  O  Lord,  he  needs  it" 
The  clergy  helped  the  cause  by  such  preach 
ing  as  that  of  Samuel  West,  who  boldly  pro 
claimed  that  "Providence  seems  plainly  to 
point  out  to  us  the  expediency,  and  even  the 
necessity,  of  our  considering  ourselves  as  an 
independent  state,"  as  well  as  by  marching  to 
battle,  as  did  Samuel  Eaton  of  Brunswick, 
Maine,  who  headed  forty  of  his  parishioners, 
and  proceeded  to  the  front.  Eaton  was  not 
unlike  the  minister  in  Danvers  whose  deacon 
was  captain  of  the  minutemen,  while  he  him 
self  was  lieutenant ;  or  Thomas  Allen  of  Pitts- 
field,  who,  having  served  on  the  Committee  of 
Correspondence,  joined  in  battle,  musket  in 
hand,  with  the  army  at  White  Plains,  Ticonder- 
oga,  and  Bennington.  Joshua  Paine  of  Stur- 
bridge  showed  the  same  spirit  when  he  offered 


20         THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

to  pay  one-fifth  of  his  salary  for  a  cask  of 
powder,  the  deacon  being  responsible  for  the  bul 
lets.  More  important  than  bullets  and  powder 
often  were  the  chaplain's  sermons,  which  were 
printed  and  freely  circulated,  and  the  soldier's 
songs,  which  were  used  on  many  battle  fields, 
composed  by  Timothy  Dwight.  The  music  of 
the  songs  and  the  solemnity  and  earnestness 
of  the  spoken  words  stirred  the  men  to  action. 
Who  could  resist  the  words  of  one  of  the  Revo 
lutionary  preachers  when  he  declared,  "It  is 
an_Jn dispensable  duty,  my  brethren,  which  we 
owe  to  God  and  our  country,  to  rouse  up  and 
bestir  ourselves ;  and  being  animated  with  a 
noble  zeal  for  the  sacred  cause  of  liberty,  to 
defend  our  lives  and  fortunes  even  to  shedding 
the  last  drop  of  blood  "  ? 

After  the  Revolution,  until  the  Presidency  of 
Thomas  Jefferson,  the  clergy  were  active  in 
using  their  influence  for  the  ratification  of  the 
Constitution  and  in  organizing  the  Republic 
during  the  critical  period  of  the  building  of  a 
nation  and  adopting  just  laws  for  the  govern 
ment  of  the  independent  states.  The  churches, 
however,  were  weakened  in  various  ways.  In 


THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LIFE  21 

Virginia,  the  governmental  support  being  with 
drawn,  the  church  declined  to  such  an  extent 
that  Bishop  Madison,  finding  so  few  clergy  in 
his  diocese,  was  forced  to  become  a  teacher  in 
William  and  Mary  College.  The  effect  of  the 
French  Revolution  was  also  seen  in  the  church- 
going  habits  of  the  people,  and  the  colleges 
became  hot-beds  of  infidelity.  In  Yale  College 
the  students  were  so  fond  of  Voltaire  and  Rous 
seau  that  they  applied  these  names  to  them 
selves  as  nicknames.  Paine's  "Age  of  Reason  " 
rather  increased  the  disrespect  into  which  reli 
gion  in  many  places  had  fallen.  The  infidelity 
and  antagonism  to  religious  institutions  that  had 
grown  up  explain  the  hatred  of  the  New  Eng 
land  Federalist  clergy  for  the  great  Democratic 
movement  that  placed  Jefferson  in  the  presi 
dential  chair.  Their  horror  of  Napoleon  and 
a  possible  French  alliance,  together  with 
their  fear  of  Jefferson  and  the  mob,  was  in  real 
ity  religious  rather  than  political.  Their  reli 
gious  prejudices  dictated  their  political  ideas. 
They  could  never  forget  that  Jefferson  had 
allowed  Paine  to  be  brought  from  France  to 
America  in  a  government  ship,  and  then  invited 


22         THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

him  to  the  White  House,  —  the  man  who  had 
said  to  Washington,  "You  are  treacherous  in 
private  friendship  and  a  hypocrite  in  public 
life."  Jefferson  they  regarded  as  a  demagogue, 
whose  word  could  not  be  trusted,  and  were  only 
too  willing  to  believe  the  stories  circulated 
about  his  private  life.  At  one  time  in  their 
sermons  they  called  him  Ephraim  who  had 
become  entangled  with  the  heathen,  and  again, 
he  was  Jeroboam  who  weaned  the  people  from 
Jehovah.  The  celebrated  minister,  Joseph 
Buckminster  of  Portsmouth,  New  Hampshire, 
represented  many  of  his  brethren  when  he 
thought  that  a  divine  scourge  would  fall  upon 
the  land  because  of  Jefferson's  success. 

This  attitude  of  the  New  England  clergy 
reached  a  climax  when  the  War  of  1812  was 
declared.  Their  sermons  had  much  to  do  with 
forming  the  general  sentiment  of  New  Eng 
land  regarding  the  war.  What  Channing 
and  Dwight  preached  with  moderation,  others 
propounded  with  less  self-restraint.  The  ex 
tremists  of  the  Hartford  Convention  were 
encouraged  by  such  statements  as  those  of  the 
rector  of  Trinity  Church,  Boston,  J.  S.  J. 


THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LIFE  23 

Gardiner,  who  exclaimed  from  his  pulpit  on 
July  23,  1812:  "The  alternative  then  is,  that 
if  you  do  not  wish  to  become  slaves  of  those 
who  own  slaves,  and  who  are  themselves  the 
slaves  of  French  slaves,  you  must  either,  in  the 
language  of  the  day,  cut  the  connection,  or  so  far 
alter  the  National  Compact  as  to  insure  your 
selves  a  due  share  in  the  government." 

Moral  questions  interested  the  clergy  even 
more  than  political  ones  ;  though  it  is  surpris 
ing  not  to  find  more  reference  to  the  special 
sins  of  the  time  than  is  contained  in  the  writ 
ings  of  the  ministers  of  the  first  quarter  of  the 
nineteenth  century.  The  consciences  of  the 
people  were  just  being  awakened;  and  occa 
sionally  vague  applications  of  ethical  principles 
were  made  to  such  concrete  evils  as  duelling, 
intemperance,  prison  reform,  and  slavery.  A 
theology  of  metaphysics  was  gradually  being 
supplanted  by  a  theology  of  life. 

Duelling  was  a  well-recognized  method  of 
settling  disputes  that  involved  the  honor  of  the 
contestants.  It  was  the  survival  of  the  old 
trial  by  combat,  and  though  often  used  for 
purposes  of  revenge  and  actually  for  murder,  it 


24        THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

was  considered,  especially  in  the  South,  as  a 
most  respectable  way  of  satisfying  the  demands 
of  personal  honor.  Members  of  Congress,  when 
led  into  personal  recrimination  by  the  heat  of 
debate,  often  cooled  their  ardor  by  an  exchange 
of  shots  at  Bladensburg,  a  few  miles  from  the 
capital.  Duelling  pistols  with  inlaid  handles 
and  silver  mountings  were  as  usual  a  gift  to  a 
gentleman  as  a  silver  snuff-box  or  a  cut-glass 
decanter.  Occasionally  the  clergy  would  rouse 
themselves  and  point  a  moral  when  there 
occurred  some  specially  shocking  duel.  A  brave 
man  was  Walter  Dulany  Addison,  rector  of 
St.  John's  Church,  Georgetown,  D.C.,  who  had 
himself  appointed  special  constable  by  Presi 
dent  Jefferson  for  the  purpose  of  arresting 
duellists.  Many  were  the  stones  told  in  Wash 
ington  of  "  Parson  Addison "  and  his  experi 
ences  with  those  determined  to  fight ;  how  the 
minister  chased  them  on  horseback ;  how  at 
another  time  he  interrupted  the  little  affair  by 
suddenly  appearing  in  their  midst  armed  with 
the  authority  of  the  state.  His  congregation 
knew,  if  he  was  absent  from  the  Sunday  ser 
vice,  that  he  was  following  the  scent  of  a  duel 


THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LIFE  25 

arranged  to  occur  at  the  very  time  when  the 
duellists  were  sure  the  parson  would  be  busy 
with  his  public  ministrations. 

The  practice  of  duelling  received  a  serious 
setback  when  the  nation  was  startled,  in  1804, 
by  the  death  of  Alexander  Hamilton,  pierced 
by  a  bullet  from  the  pistol  of  Aaron  Burr.  The 
clergy  everywhere  were  vehement  in  their  de 
nunciation  of  the  act  which  robbed  the  country 
of  one  of  its  most  trusted  advisers  and  greatest 
men.  The  sermon  that  set  forth  in  the  most 
commanding  fashion  the  indignation  at  the 
crime  was  preached  by  Dr.  Eliphalet  Nott  in 
the  North  Dutch  Church  in  Albany,  on  July  29, 
1804.  "I  cannot  forgive,"  he  said,  "that  min 
ister  at  the  altar,  who  has  hitherto  forborne 
to  remonstrate  on  this  subject.  I  cannot  for 
give  that  judge  on  the  bench  or  that  gov 
ernor  in  the  chair  of  state  who  lightly  passed 
over  such  offences.  I  cannot  forgive  the  public 
in  whose  opinion  the  duellist  finds  a  sanctuary." 
Timothy  Dwight's  famous  sermon  against  duel 
ling,  delivered  in  the  college  chapel  at  Yale, 
was  long  remembered,  and  contributed,  with 
others,  to  create  a  public  opinion  hostile  to 


26        THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

the  practice,  though  many  famous  duels  were 
fought  after  that  of  Burr  and  Hamilton.  Ly- 
man  Beecher's  ringing  words,  "  We  are  mur 
derers,  —  a  nation  of  murderers,  —  while  we 
tolerate  and  reward  the  perpetrators  of  the 
crime,"  occur  in  a  sermon  of  his,  forty  thou 
sand  of  which  were  printed  and  scattered  over 
the  North  and  used  against  Henry  Clay. 

The  duty  of  avoiding  drunkenness  was  early 
preached  by  the  clergy,  though  there  are  ac 
counts  of  frequent  " jolly  ordinations"  where 
the  wine-cup  was  a  natural  part  of  the  festivi 
ties,  and  this  in  New  England.  In  Virginia 
the  hospitable  sideboard  always  had  upon  it 
decanters  from  which  the  parson,  as  an  honored 
guest,  was  expected  to  partake.  Even  Cotton 
Mather  had  asked  in  1689,  "whether  the  mul 
titude  or  quality  of  drinking-houses  in  the  midst 
of  us  had  not  once  been  a  stumbling-block  of 
our  iniquity"  and  Joseph  Baxter  in  1727  in 
quired,  "  Is  there  nothing  more  to  be  done 
to  keep  Town-dwellers  from  sotting  away  their 
Time  at  Taverns  ?  And  cannot  there  be  some 
thing  done  that  will  be  more  effectual  to  pre 
vent  the  making  of  Indians  Drunk  ?  " 


THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN  LIFE  2? 

The  growth  of  a  real  temperance  question, 
with  kindred  ideas  of  total  abstinence,  did  not 
begin  until  the  years  between  1808  and  1813, 
the  date  of  the  starting  of  the  Boston  Society 
for  the  suppression  of  intemperance,  though 
this  society  could  not  be  called  a  total  absti 
nence  body.  The  Presbyterian  clergy  in  1818 
put  themselves  on  record,  that  men  ought  "to 
abstain  from  even  the  common  use  of  ardent 
spirits."  The  two  men  who  had  the  most  to 
do  with  the  formation  of  public  sentiment  at 
the  start  were  Dr.  Nott  and  Lyman  Beecher. 
Dr.  Nott,  when  President  of  Union  College, 
prepared  a  series  of  most  exhaustive  lectures, 
treating  the  subject  from  the  scriptural,  physi 
cal,  and  social  sides,  and  showing  how  both 
religion  and  morals  were  arrayed  against  the 
drinking  habits  of  the  people.  These  lectures 
were  afterward  collected  and  printed,  in  1823, 
in  a  volume  that  attained  great  popularity, 
called  "  Sermons  on  the  Evils  of  Intemper 
ance."  Lyman  Beecher's  famous  "Six  Ser 
mons  "  were  among  the  first  publications  to 
hint  at  prohibition;  in  these  he  declared  that 
the  only  remedy  for  intemperance  was  "the 


28         THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

banishment  of  ardent  spirits  from  the  list  of 
lawful  articles  of  commerce."  When  Channing 
came  to  deal  with  the  subject  in  his  address 
before  the  Massachusetts  Temperance  Society 
on  February  28,  1837,  he  spent  very  little  of 
his  time  in  condemnation,  but  in  his  wise  way, 
seeking  the  causes  that  produced  intemperance, 
he  antedated  our  modern  methods  by  suggest 
ing  reforms  that  might  substitute  some  health 
ful  occupation  and  amusement  to  satisfy  the 
cravings  which  brutal  and  inferior  minds  con 
ceive  are  only  appealed  to  by  intoxication.  He 
asserted  that  the  widespread  vice  was  due  to 
the  burden  of  toil  that  the  poor  had  to 
bear,  to  intellectual  depression,  to  sensuality 
and  want  of  self-respect.  To  remove  these 
causes  he  advocated  innocent  pleasures  for 
recreation  and  culture :  popular  music,  dancing, 
and  even  the  theatre,  if  a  better  drama  might 
spring  up  in  the  place  of  the  coarse  and  indeli 
cate  performances  which  were  then  given. 
Restrictive  legislation  and  the  enforcement  of 
important  laws  have  resulted  from  the  temper 
ance  agitation  by  the  ministers,  though  they 
have  not  always  agreed  as  to  the  best  ways  and 
means  of  solving  the  problem. 


THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LIFE  29 

The  greatest  moral  question,  without  doubt, 
that  the  American  clergy  had  to  face,  was 
slavery ;  and  after  all  is  said,  and  the  facts  are 
known,  it  is  just  to  say  that  they  faced  it 
boldly  and  with  wisdom.  Long  before  the 
slavery  question  entered  into  the  domain  of 
politics  it  was  both  directly  and  indirectly  the 
subject  of  their  work  and  preaching.  With 
subtle  power  it  was  sure  to  be  felt  when  serious 
and  religious  men  preached  the  moral  principles 
of  Christianity  :  the  only  wonder  is  that  the 
agitation  did  not  begin  earlier.  In  colonial 
days  there  were  more  than  occasional  refer 
ences  to  the  iniquity  of  the  institution.  When 
the  first  society  for  the  abolition  of  slavery  was 
organized  in  1774  among  the  Quakers  of  Phila 
delphia,  there  were  ministers  in  Massachusetts 
who  unhesitatingly  advocated  emancipation. 
Dr.  Hopkins  in  Newport,  the  centre  of  the 
slave  trade,  urged,  without  ceasing,  the  sin  of 
buying  and  selling  human  beings,  and  Samuel 
Stillman,  in  a  sermon  preached  in  Boston  in 
1779,  prayed,  "  May  the  year  of  jubilee  soon 
arrive,  when  Africa  shall  cast  the  look  of  grati 
tude  to  these  unhappy  regions  for  the  total 


30        THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

emancipation  of  her  sons."  He  was  followed 
by  Moses  Hemmenway,  in  1784,  who  described 
"  that  inhuman  monster,  SLAVERY,  which  has  too 
long  been  tolerated.  .  .  .  And  it  is  devoutly 
wished  that  the  turf  may  lie  firm  upon  its 
grave."  Dr.  Levi  Hart,  in  1774,  at  a  town 
meeting  in  Farmington,  Connecticut,  had  spoken 
freely  on  the  subject,  which  was  further  con 
demned  in  a  poem  published  in  1775,  by  Aaron 
Cleaveland  of  Norwich,  that  singular  character 
who  was  both  a  hatter  and  a  minister. 

The  first  deliberate  announcement  of  the 
moral  wrong  of  slavery  by  any  of  the  churches 
was  made  by  the  Methodists  in  the  conference 
of  1780,  when  they  resolved  "that  slavery  is 
contrary  to  the  laws  of  God,  man,  and  nature, 
and  hurtful  to  society ;  contrary  to  the  dictates 
of  conscience  and  pure  religion,  and  doing  that 
which  we  would  not  that  others  should  do  to  us 
and  ours."  The  Presbyterian  Church  no  less 
than  six  times,  between  the  years  1787  and  1836, 
declared  in  favor  of  the  abolition  of  slavery,  by 
asserting  "  the  deepest  concern  that  any  vestiges 
of  slavery  remained  in  the  country."  It  was 
in  1823  that  the  annual  Fourth  of  July  address 


THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LIFE  31 

against  slavery  was  begun  in  the  Park  Street 
Church,  Boston.  Then,  in  various  parts  of  the 
country,  and  even  in  the  South,  there  was  a 
dissemination  of  antislavery  ideas,  before  the 
abolition  movement  began  its  crusade.  His 
tory  has  not  brought  out  sufficiently  the  power 
ful  influence  exerted  in  frontier  towns  and 
cities  of  the  West,  by  the  itinerant  Methodist 
preachers  and  the  Universalists,  under  the 
impulse  of  that  vigorous  soul,  Elhanan  Win 
chester,  who,  by  planting  his  doctrines  west  of 
the  Alleghanies  and  in  the  Ohio  Valley,  secured 
Christian  civilization  to  many  scattered  hamlets, 
and  nourished  the  thoughts  which  developed 
among  the  people  a  clear  conscience  to  deal 
with  the  slavery  issue  when  it  came.  When 
slavery  became  a  burning  political  question  and 
the  air  was  full  of  recrimination,  and  homes  and 
friendships  were  rent  asunder,  the  churches 
felt  the  strain.  The  Methodist  church,  North 
and  South,  divided  in  1845,  the  immediate 
cause  being  a  slave-holding  bishop,  James  O. 
Andrews,  who  said,  "  Strange  as  it  may  seem  to 
brethren,  I  am  a  slave-holder  for  conscience' 
sake."  The  Northern  Methodists  could  not 


32         THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

stand  this,  and  they  so  legislated  that  a  great 
schism  in  the  church  occurred.  There  was  the 
same  break  in  the  Presbyterian  church  in  1857, 
when  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law  became  the  cause 
of  contention. 

The  abolitionists  claimed  some  of  the  clergy 
as  their  ardent  supporters,  notably,  many  of 
the  Methodists,  and  men  like  Theodore  Parker, 
who  threw  himself  heart  and  soul  into  the 
movement ;  but  the  large  body  of  the  clergy, 
among  them  such  men  as  Channing  and  Bush- 
nell,  refused  to  ally  themselves  with  the  ex 
tremists.  They  were  as  opposed  to  slavery  as 
the  most  vituperative  fanatic.  They,  however, 
felt  that  the  abolitionists  were  taking  the  wrong 
course  to  achieve  any  practical  results.  It  has 
often  been  charged  that  the  clergy  were  cow 
ardly  and  time-servers,  because  they  did  not 
join  in  the  general  chorus  of  invective.  Their 
position  should  not  be  misunderstood.  When 
they  thought  it  wise  to  act,  they  protested  in 
overwhelming  numbers,  as  in  the  memorial 
against  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill,  which  bore 
3050  signatures.  They  preached  against  slav 
ery,  and  upheld  continually  the  principles  which 


THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LIFE  33 

they  knew  in  time  would  undermine  the  whole 
institution.  One  leading  cause  of  their  absence 
from  the  abolitionist  meetings  was,  that  slavery 
was  not  the  only  theme  under  discussion. 
Other  things  were  dragged  in,  and  frequently 
religion  was  held  up  to  ridicule.  "  If  the 
assembly  was  disorderly,"  said  Emerson,  "it 
was  picturesque.  Madmen,  madwomen,  men 
with  beards,  Bunkers,  Muggletonians,  Come- 
outers,  Groaners,  Agrarians,  Seventh-day  Bap 
tists,  Quakers,  Abolitionists,  Calvinists,  Unita 
rians,  and  Philosophers, — all  came  successively 
to  the  top."  The  mistakes  of  Moses  and  the 
mistakes  of  the  churches  were  illuminated  with 
the  same  coruscation  as  the  "southern  broods 
of  Hell."  The  air  thus  became  sulphurous  and 
difficult  for  rational  people  to  breathe.  The 
abolitionists  seemed  to  care  little  for  the  Union. 
"  Let  the  slave  states  go,"  became  the  cry ;  the 
clergy  believed  in  the  Republic,  and  were  willing 
to  use  every  means  to  keep  it  a  united  whole. 
They  also  desired  to  retain  some  hold  on  the 
South  until  that  moment  arrived  when  it  was  no 
longer  possible ;  and  they  felt  that  there  were 
other  arguments  to  be  used  in  debate  than  abuse 


34         THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Webster  told  the  Senate  that  hostility  to 
slavery  was  born  in  the  religion  of  his  constitu 
ents.  He  uttered  a  great  truth:  the  religion 
they  had  learned  from  childhood,  which  they 
associated  with  every  stage  of  their  history, 
and  the  traditions  of  their  ancestors,  which 
developed  in  them  the  sense  of  brotherhood 
and  touched  their  practical  natures  with  sym 
pathy,  were  the  force  that  made  them  act  when 
the  fulness  of  time  had  come.  The  vital  seed 
sprang  to  the  harvest  when  the  soil  was  watered 
with  the  red  blood  of  sacrifice. 

As  the  time  for  the  great  conflict  drew  near, 
representatives  of  the  clergy  everywhere  were 
using  their  might  to  stay  the  impending  seces 
sion.  General  Scott  said  that  the  state  of  Cali 
fornia  was  saved  to  the  Union  "by  a  young 
man  of  the  name  of  King."  This  was  none 
other  than  Thomas  Starr  King,  a  strong 
preacher  and  brilliant  lecturer,  who  was  the 
champion  of  the  Union  at  political  gatherings 
throughout  California  just  before  the  war. 
Dr.  William  Eliot  of  St.  Louis,  it  was  freely 
said,  "  has  done  ten  times  as  much  as  any  other 
ten  men  to  keep  Missouri  true  to  the  Union 


THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LIFE  35 

as  a  free  state."  Even  the  leading  Southern 
bishops  opposed  secession.  "You  see  I  am 
almost  in  despair,"  wrote  Bishop  Meade  ;  "I 
am  told  that  our  clergy  in  Charleston  preach 
in  favor  of  disunion."  Bishop  Otey  of  Tennes 
see  exclaimed,  "  It  is  God  alone  that  can  still 
the  madness  of  the  people."  The  Episcopal 
General  Convention  threw  its  great  influence 
on  the  side  of  the  Union,  by  declaring  the 
readiness  of  its  members  to  fight  for  the  cause. 
Those  were  days  when  men  had  to  choose,  and 
every  indication  of  loyalty  was  of  value.  While 
Moses  Stuart  of  Andover  upheld  slavery,  and 
Bishop  John  Henry  Hopkins  advocated  the 
peculiar  institution  of  the  South  in  his  notori 
ous  book  on  the  "  Vindication  of  Slavery," 
there  were  many  men  in  all  the  churches  who 
believed  in  the  righteousness  of  the  war  and 
who  foresaw  that  emancipation  must  result 
from  the  successful  ending  of  the  conflict. 
Abraham  Lincoln  knew  what  the  churches  and 
ministers  had  really  done  in  upholding  his 
policy.  His  opinion  is  preserved  for  us  in  the 
following  words :  — 

"Nobly   sustained   as   the    government    has 


36         THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

been  by  all  the  churches,  I  would  utter  nothing 
which  might  in  the  least  appear  invidious 
against  any.  Yet  without  this  it  may  fairly 
be  said  that  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
not  less  devoted  than  the  rest,  is  by  its 
greater  numbers  the  most  important  of  all.  .  .  . 
God  bless  the  Methodist  church  !  bless  all  the 
churches !  and  blessed  be  God,  who  in  this 
our  great  trial  giveth  us  the  churches." 

During  the  Civil  War,  in  many  ways,  through 
the  Sanitary  Commission,  as  chaplains,  and  as 
a  home-guard  of  inspiration,  the  clergy  man 
fully  bore  their  part  in  the  great  struggle. 
More  conspicuously  abroad,  men  like  Henry 
Ward  Beecher,  Archbishop  Hughes,  and  Bishop 
Mcllvane  rendered  important  service  in  sustain 
ing  the  friendly  neutrality  of  European  govern 
ments.  Beecher's  remarkable  series  of  speeches 
in  England  on  slavery  and  the  war  did  much  to 
arouse  the  people  of  England  to  see  the  justice 
of  the  Union  cause.  Archbishop  Hughes,  in 
response  to  Seward's  request,  went  on  a  semi 
official  mission  to  France  and  helped,  by  his 
tact  and  good  sense,  to  prevent  any  possibility 
of  intervention  or  recognition  of  the  belliger- 


THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LIFE  37 

ents.  Bishop  Mcllvane  went  on  a  similar 
errand  to  England,  where,  as  an  ecclesiastic  of 
the  Anglican  Communion,  he  was  cordially 
received,  and  was  able,  even  beyond  his  expec 
tations,  to  place  the  facts  so  clearly  before  his 
hearers,  that  they  became  more  favorably  dis 
posed  toward  the  administration  of  Lincoln. 

Thus,  by  the  use  of  voice  and  pen,  the  Ameri 
can  clergy  have  exercised,  through  well-recog 
nized  literary  channels,  a  great  influence  upon 
American  life.  In  referring  to  this  influence, 
it  must  also  be  remembered  that  they  were 
preachers  of  the  Christian  religion.  If  Chris 
tianity  has  been  a  power  in  the  land  in  devel 
oping  the  human  conscience  and  inspiring 
rectitude  of  character,  in  encouraging  men  to 
lives  of  service,  in  introducing  sentiments  of 
high  honor  and  business  integrity,  it  has  in 
large  measure  been  due  to  the  ministers.  They 
have  had  a  hearing  in  every  hamlet,  —  on  one 
day  set  apart  from  the  seven  when  the  children, 
the  ignorant,  and  the  men  of  education  and  of 
power  have  heard  them.  They  have  thus  sus 
tained  a  sense  of  the  divine  source  of  duty,  and 
led  their  hearers  into  the  presence  of  universal 


38         THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

moral  forces.  Their  teaching  has  been  potent 
on  every  battle-field,  and  in  every  legislative 
hall,  in  fine  examples  of  devotion  and  in  acts  of 
heroism.  The  place  that  Christianity  occupies 
in  American  civilization  is  largely  due  to  the 
life  and  example  of  the  clergy. 


CHAPTER    II 

EARLY    WRITERS    AND    HISTORIANS 

FROM  the  colonial  and  provincial  periods  of 
American  letters  there  have  survived,  out  of 
the  mass  of  sermons,  systems,  and  pamphlets 
of  the  theologians,  a  few  books  that  may  be 
called  literature.  "The  Magnalia"  is  curious, 
and  a  mine  for  the  historian  of  manners;  but 
by  far  the  best  survival  is  Edwards's  "  Freedom 
of  the  Will,"  a  study  full  of  originality  and  a  cer 
tain  buoyant  force  that  makes  the  metaphysical 
treatise  as  lucid  and  harmonious  as  the  author's 
own  aesthetic  love  when  dealing  with  nature 
and  the  soul,  unhampered  by  inherited  dogma 
tism.  Edwards  stands  at  the  head  of  the 
list  of  American  theologians  and  literary  men  ; 
and  though  he  contributed  to  the  philosophi 
cal  and  theological  side  of  life,  his  work  is 
so  genuine  and  so  beautifully  done  that  he 
39 


40         THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

must  be  claimed  as  a  literary  force,  the  move- 
ment  of  which  has  not  yet  been  stayed. 

Another  of  these  survivals  is  Michael 
Wigglesworth's  "Day  of  Doom,"  a  solemn 
relict  of  Puritan  poetry  before  the  verse  of 
New  England  tripped  lightly  along  and  cele 
brated  themes  other  than  the  dread  mystery  of 
a  fallen  race.  Even  Nathaniel  Ward,  the 
author  of  "  The  Simple  Cobbler  of  Agawam," 
occasionally  left  Sinai  for  Parnassus  and  ob 
served  that 

"  Poetry's  a  gift  wherein  but  few  excel, 
He  doth  very  ill,  that  doth  not  passing  well, 
But  he  doth  passing  well,  that  doth  his  best, 
And  he  doth  best,  that  passeth  all  the  rest." 

The  loving  diary  of  David  Brainard  still 
breathes  of  the  suffering  that  willed  to  sacri 
fice,  and  through  gloomy  self-analysis  he 
reached  a  joy  in  the  thought  of  service  to  man 
and  God,  exclaiming  on  his  death-bed,  as 
Edwards  tells  us:  "My  Heaven  is  to  please 
God,  and  glorify  Him,  and  to  give  all  to  Him, 
and  to  be  wholly  devoted  to  His  Glory ;  that  is 
the  Heaven  I  long  for ;  that  is  my  Religion, 


EARLY   WRITERS  AND    HISTORIANS  41 

and  that  is  my  Happiness."  The  Quaker  John 
Woolman,  school-teacher,  tailor,  and  preacher, 
has  left  a  journal  with  a  simple  literary  style, 
self-poised  and  direct,  which  Whittier,  in 
editing  in  1871,  speaks  of  as  revealing  a  serene 
and  beautiful  presence.  The  thought  pervad 
ing  the  whole  of  the  diary,  that  "religion  is 
love,"  is  a  mild  antidote  to  the  fierceness  of 
belligerent  theologians,  and  proves  that  within 
the  whirlwind  of  debate  there  was  a  still  small 
voice  which  could  be  heard  in  the  sheltered 
soul. 

In  the  national  era  of  American  literature 
this  same  impulse  for  self-expression  is  to  be 
seen  in  even  a  more  vigorous  form.  For  the 
most  part  college  graduates,  except  when  cer 
tain  sects  have  rejoiced  in  an  uneducated  minis 
try,  the  clergy  have  in  varying  degrees  put  their 
learning  into  the  form  of  precise  expression 
with  uninterrupted  regularity  and  unrestrained 
voluminousness  :  the  weekly  sermon,  written 
with  care,  has  been  their  editorial  leader, 
enforced  with  special  addresses  and  orations, 
making  an  inevitable  event  as  "sure  as  preach 
ing."  In  the  exposition  of  doctrines  and  the 


42        THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

controversies  between  sects  there  have  been 
books  innumerable,  books  of  attack  and  de 
fence,  pamphlets  with  curious  names,  huge  com 
mentaries  and  systems  of  theology  and  philos 
ophy  ;  and  occasionally  some  of  the  more  ener 
getic  of  the  clergy  have  turned  aside  from  the 
immediate  duty  and  written  histories,  biogra 
phies,  sketches,  poems,  hymns,  and  even  novels. 
There  are  many  reasons  which  account  for 
the  lack  of  genuine  literary  fertility  among  the 
clergy.  They  have  been  engaged  in  the  work 
of  creating  churches  and  institutions.  The 
very  fabrics  and  endowments  have  had  to  be 
built  up,  especially  in  the  rapidly  growing  parts 
of  America.  There  are  few  fellowships  with 
pecuniary  value  attached  which  make  it  possible 
for  a  man  to  devote  himself  to  special  branches 
of  study;  and  the  average  American  parish, 
with  its  numerous  demands  of  a  public  and  pri 
vate  character,  is  not  favorable  to  profound 
study  or  that  quiet  reflection  necessary  for 
works  of  the  imagination.  The  clergy  have 
been  preachers,  organizers,  reformers,  citizens, 
men  eminently  respected  in  their  communities, 
giving  of  their  time  and  thought  to  the  needs 


EARLY   WRITERS  AND   HISTORIANS  43 

of  the  people.  These  very  characteristics  have 
prevented  them  from  developing  their  talents 
in  literary  directions.  Centred  about  the  univer 
sities  there  have  been  clergymen  who  could  de 
vote  themselves  more  particularly  to  writing,  and 
here  and  there  a  parish  minister  has  been  able  to 
take  the  time  to  make  himself  proficient  in  some 
branch  of  learning.  But  in  the  main,  it  has 
been  difficult  for  the  clergy  to  do  two  things  at 
once,  be  pioneer  builders  and  upholders  of  the 
institution,  and  give  free  play  to  their  talents 
for  research  or  delicate  literary  expression.  What 
time  or  inclination  for  letters  had  the  Metho 
dist  itinerant  preacher  and  circuit-rider,  who  fre 
quently  camped  out  in  the  mountains  or  found 
a  night's  lodging  in  a  log-cabin  on  the  prairies  ? 
He  did  an  important  work  in  connecting  the 
scattered  settlements  together  with  a  bond  of 
friendly  and  moral  interest,  but  he  could  rarely 
even  keep  a  diary  of  his  experiences  and,  in 
many  cases,  thrilling  adventures.  The  Univer- 
salist  preacher,  pushing  his  way  into  the  forests 
of  Ohio  and  Illinois,  engaged  in  the  same  kind 
of  pioneer  work,  could  do  little  more  than  carry 
with  him  the  doctrine  of  John  Murray  and 


44        THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN  LETTERS 

Hosea  Ballou.  The  Baptist  ministers  through 
out  the  South  and  West  created  congrega 
tions  and  taught  them  the  principles  of  right 
conduct.  In  their  pathway  sprang  up  innumer 
able  colleges  which  they  founded,  and  these 
became  important  elements  in  the  general 
diffusion  of  education. 

Among  the  Congregational  clergy  of  New 
England  with  the  Unitarian  development  so 
fruitful  in  literary  inspiration,  and  the  sturdy 
Scotch-Irish  Presbyterians  of  the  Middle  states 
with  their  love  for  dogmatic  theology,  and  the 
Episcopalians  drawing  upon  the  wealth  of  Eng 
lish  Church  tradition  and  refinement,  are  to 
be  discovered  the  sources  of  literature.  The 
old  established  universities  belonged  to  them. 
They  were  in  closer  touch  with  foreign  thought, 
and  better  able  to  interpret  contemporary 
events.  Harvard  and  Yale,  Princeton  and 
Columbia,  were  the  breeding-places  of  Ameri 
can  ideas. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  American  mind 
has  worked,  first  in  theology,  second  in  politics, 
and  last  in  literature.  Historically,  this  makes 
an  easy  division,  but  in  each  department  there 


EARLY   WRITERS   AND   HISTORIANS  45 

have  always  been  representatives,  sometimes 
more  of  one  than  of  another  ;  it  would  be  a 
narrow  definition  of  literature  to  exclude  from 
it  either  the  theology  of  earlier  or  later  days, 
or  their  politics,  and  confine  it  to  the  poetry, 
or  essay,  or  novel  of  the  modern  time.  Pro 
fessor  Richardson,  in  his  admirable  book  on 
American  Literature,  speaking  of  the  early  theo 
logical  writings  of  the  ministry,  says :  "  Their 
kinship  in  literature  lies  only  in  the  fact  that 
they  were  written,  and  that  they  had  an  ideal 
theme.  This  must  be  the  final  verdict  with 
reference  to  thousands  of  printed  pages,  pro 
duced  by  godly  and  justly  honored  American 
ministers  before  the  Revolution.  Their  quaint 
characteristics  and  their  doctrinal  systems  do 
not  make  them  literature  for  the  most  part." 
This  may  be  true,  but  it  does  not  exclude  from 
literature  theological  writing  either  in  the  colo 
nial  or  national  era,  if  such  writing  attains  the 
dignity  of  important  utterances  on  human  rela 
tionships  and  man's  duty  to  his  Creator.  Eng 
lish  literature  has  surely  been  indebted  to  the 
sermons  of  Hooker,  Tillotson,  Leighton,  and 
Paley.  The  American  clergy  have  in  many 


46        THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

different  ways  made  similar  valuable  contribu 
tions  to  our  literature.  The  parish  minister 
would  take  the  time  usually  allotted  to  exercise 
and  spend  it  in  his  library,  or  use  his  vacations 
for  investigation  into  some  subject  that  inter 
ested  him.  Many  who,  because  of  ill  health 
or  for  other  reasons,  retired  from  their  active 
ministry,  often  made  fruitful  their  declining 
years  by  writing  and  publishing  books  on  sub 
jects  of  importance.  In  more  than  one  case, 
however,  the  love  for  letters  superseded  the 
love  for  the  clerical  profession,  and  the  latter 
was  renounced  in  order  to  devote  the  whole 
time  to  the  pursuit  of  learning. 

Among  the  clergy,  therefore,  there  are  many 
names  of  men  who  have  enriched  the  literature 
of  America  as  historians,  poets,  hymn-writers, 
authors  of  fiction,  builders  of  theological  sys 
tems,  expounders  of  philosophy,  and  writers  of 
a  vast  variety  of  books  included  in  what  has  well 
been  called  "  borderlands  of  literature."  It  is 
by  no  means  easy  to  classify  these  various 
authors,  because  they  did  not  confine  them 
selves  to  any  one  branch  of  literature,  often 
being  conspicuous  for  works  in  several  depart- 


EARLY   WRITERS   AND    HISTORIANS  47 

ments,  and,  in  addition,  having  a  well-earned 
fame  as  preachers  and,  it  may  be,  as  administra 
tors  and  theologians.  One  wrote  history,  and 
also  indulged  in  philosophical  speculation ; 
another  was  something  of  a  poet,  while  at  the 
same  time  he  would  be  known  as  the  writer  of  a 
Latin  grammar ;  one  famous  as  a  college  presi 
dent  would  write  important  treatises  on  moral 
science ;  and  one  known  as  the  author  of 
novels,  would  become  the  stately  historian. 
Authorship  was  often  incidental  to  the  main 
purpose  of  life,  though  in  many  cases  the  mis 
sion  of  literature,  as  a  permanent  and  wide 
spread  method  of  rendering  service  to  the 
nation,  was  recognized,  and  the  author  sacri 
ficed  a  temporary  success  in  less  exacting 
fields  to  the  more  lasting  benefits  conferred 
through  the  printed  page. 

History  was  a  congenial  study  to  the  clergy, 
because  they  were  ministers  of  a  historical 
religion.  Doctrines  and  church  organizations 
in  every  stage  of  their  development  bear  the 
marks  of  historical  conflicts.  Naturally,  there 
fore,  those  who  watched  the  passage  of  the 
centuries  with  special  interest,  would  be  among 


48         THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

the  first  to  record  contemporary  events,  and 
delve  into  the  traditions  of  the  past.  Promi 
nent  among  these  historians  are  Ezra  Stiles, 
Jeremy  Belknap,  Abiel  Holmes,  William  White, 
John  G.  Palfrey,  John  Stephens  Cabot  Abbott, 
Jacob  Abbott,  and  Octavius  Frothingham. 

Ezra  Stiles  (1/27-1795)  was  acknowledged 
to  be  one  of  the  most  learned  men  of  his 
generation.  Before  he  was  elected  to  the 
Presidency  of  Yale  College  in  1777  he  was 
a  correspondent  of  many  foreign  literary  men, 
writing  at  one  time  a  letter  in  Latin  to  the 
principal  of  a  Jesuit  college  in  Mexico,  and 
again  to  the  Prefect  of  the  University  of  Co 
penhagen  to  make  minute  inquiries  about 
some  Arabic  manuscript  that  had  been  dis 
covered  in  Egypt.  He  was  a  remarkable  He 
brew  scholar,  and  made  more  progress  than 
any  of  his  American  contemporaries  in  Per 
sian,  Arabic,  and  Syriac.  In  scientific  ex 
periments  he  was  aided  by  Benjamin  Franklin, 
who  sent  Stiles,  when  a  tutor  at  Yale  in  1749, 
an  electrical  apparatus  with  which  he  made 
many  experiments,  —  the  first,  in  fact,  ever 
made  in  New  England.  Franklin  continued 


EARLY  WRITERS  AND   HISTORIANS  49 

his  interest,  and  sent  him  a  Fahrenheit's 
thermometer,  and  later  suggested  to  the  Uni 
versity  of  Edinburgh  that  it  confer  the  de 
gree  of  D.D.  upon  him.  These  favors  were 
reciprocated  when  Franklin  visited  Yale,  and 
President  Stiles  made  an  appropriate  address 
of  welcome  in  Latin,  though  this  was  nothing 
unusual  for  him,  for  at  Commencement  he 
sometimes  delivered  a  Hebrew  oration  in  the 
morning  and  a  Latin  one  in  the  afternoon. 
The  funeral  orations  in  honor  of  Governor 
Law  and  Bishop  Berkeley  were  considered 
impressive,  though  in  the  Latin  language. 
Classical  scholarship  did  not  prevent  Dr.  Stiles 
from  taking  keen  interest  in  the  history  of 
his  country.  He  began  an  "  Ecclesiastical 
History  of  New  England,"  which,  however, 
he  never  finished ;  and  his  manuscript  Journal 
filled  fifteen  volumes.  The  chief  historical 
work  he  engaged  in  was  "A  History  of  Three 
of  the  Judges  of  King  Charles  I.,"  containing 
the  account  of  Whalley,  Goffe,  and  Dixwell, 
who,  at  the  Restoration  in  1660,  fled  to  Amer 
ica  and  were  concealed  for  many  years,  though 
frequent  efforts  were  made  by  the  Crown  to 


50         THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

bring  them  to  justice.  This  historical  work 
is  valuable  as  a  careful  inquiry  at  first  hand 
into  the  history  and  fate  of  the  three  judges. 
Governor  Hutchinson's  account  of  their  ca 
reer  is  generally  sustained.  An  investigation 
is  made  into  the  compilations  of  Whitlock  and 
Rushworth,  with  quotations  from  other  Euro 
pean  sources ;  and  a  careful  examination  into 
the  local  traditions  and  reports  concerning 
their  places  of  residence,  adventures,  and  graves 
in  America  are  added,  with  arguments  for 
their  defence,  and  a  full  account  of  their  deal 
ings  with  the  king.  The  object  of  the  book 
is  to  enable  "  the  world  to  form  an  idea  of  the 
principles  and  design  of  these  worthies,"  and 
the  hope  is  expressed  that  "  the  memory  of 
these  suffering  exiles  will  be  immortalized  with 
honor  when  there  is  a  proper  method  adopted 
of  judging  criminal  royalty."  The  conclusion 
is  reached  that  "all  three  were  of  King 
Charles's  Judges  ;  all  three  were  of  the  Par 
liamentary  and  Oliverian  army  ;  all  three  mem 
bers  of  Parliament ;  two  of  them  of  Oliver's 
most  honorable  House  of  Lords." 

The  three  men  on  landing  in  America  stayed 


EARLY    WRITERS   AND    HISTORIANS  51 

for  a  time  in  Cambridge,  but  later  sought  safety 
in  flight  to  New  Haven,  in  which  city  Dixwell 
lived  for  many  years,  changing  his  name  to 
Davids.  Goffe  and  Whalley  went  to  Hadley  and 
were  secreted  by  the  minister,  Mr.  Russell,  in 
a  little  chamber  of  his  house,  behind  the 
chimney  and  between  two  rooms.  It  was  re 
lated  that  they  were  buried  in  the  cellar  of  the 
minister's  house.  All  together  the  story  is  a 
most  romantic  one,  and  well  told,  Dr.  Stiles 
showing  the  instincts  of  the  true  historian  by 
basing  his  conclusions  on  documents  he  had 
inspected  and  the  evidence  of  persons  whom 
he  had  cross-questioned.  The  analysis  of  the 
inscription  on  a  tombstone  in  New  Haven  to 
discover  whether  Whalley  was  buried  by  the  side 
of  the  acknowledged  grave  of  Dixwell  is  most 
ingenious,  suggesting  the  mind  of  the  mathe 
matician,  and  must  have  been  like  the  calculations 
of  Dr.  Stiles  when  computing  the  orbits  of  the 
stars,  as  he  pursued  his  favorite  study  of  astron 
omy.  In  the  chapter  on  the  justification  of  the 
judges  we  have  a  clear  Puritan  estimate  of  the 
righteousness  of  the  verdict  against  Charles  I., 
in  the  contention:  "That  in  great  revolutions 


52         THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LE1TERS 

and  national  rescues  of  parties  and  entire  liberty, 
these  tribunals  may  be  and  have  been  as  dif 
ferently  instituted,  and  yet  become  vested  and 
clothed  with  just,  legal,  and  plenary  authority : 
and  that  the  high  court  of  1649  was  such  a 
legal  tribunal,  and  that  their  sentence  was 
righteous  and  just." 

Before  the  Revolution,  Dr.  Stiles  was  one  of 
those  calm  observers  who  saw  that  it  was  com 
ing  and  helped  to  form  public  opinion  by  the 
remark  that  "  there  will  be  a  Runnemede  in 
America."  When  during  the  war  there  were 
British  commissioners  appointed  to  negotiate 
with  Congress,  he  forcibly  maintained  that  "no 
proposal  for  interviews  and  negotiations  should 
be  attended  to  without  this  preliminary :  An 
act  of  Parliament  renouncing  the  dominion  of 
these  states,  and  acknowledging  their  indepen 
dence  and  sovereignty ;  at  the  same  time 
withdrawing  their  armies ;  then  we  may  listen 
to  propositions  of  alliance."  Though  Dr.  Stiles 
hesitated  to  accept  the  Presidency  of  Yale,  say 
ing  that  "  the  diadem  of  a  President  is  a  crown 
of  thorns,"  he  fulfilled  the  duties  of  the  office 
acceptably,  being  also  Professor  of  Divinity, 


EARLY   WRITERS  AND   HISTORIANS  53 

Oriental  Languages,  Philosophy,  and  Natural 
Sciences.  His  administration  of  the  college 
was  hampered  by  controversies  concerning  the 
constitution  of  the  institution,  the  legislature 
refusing  to  make  appropriations  for  its  financial 
assistance.  The  conduct  of  the  students  and  a 
certain  laxity  of  discipline  further  interfered 
with  the  best  organized  work,  but  he  paved  the 
way  during  the  trying  time  just  after  the  Revo 
lution  for  the  more  normal  regime  under  his 
successor  Timothy  Dwight.  His  published 
works  include  a  celebrated  "Election  Sermon" 
and  "An  Account  of  the  Settlement  of  Bristol"  ; 
and  he  left  behind  him  in  manuscript  more  than 
forty  volumes.  His  journal  is  full  of  historic 
interest.  A  fragment  of  it  has  been  published, 
containing  an  account  of  a  journey  on  horseback 
from  New  Haven  to  Philadelphia,  where  he 
viewed  with  pleasure  "  the  rods  and  wires  which 
defended  the  Academy  House  from  lightning." 
He  noted  such  peculiarities  as  a  woman  three 
feet  high,  and  a  monkey  which  he  saw  by  the 
way,  not  failing  to  describe  his  entertainment  in 
New  York,  where  with  his  friends  he  "supped 
and  settled  politics  over  a  generous  bottle." 


54         THE   CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Jeremy  Belknap  (1744-1798)  has  been  called 
"The  Father  of  American  History."  His 
claim  to  this  title  rests  mainly  on  his  two 
works,  "History  of  New  Hampshire"  and 
"  Historical  Account  of  those  Persons  who 
have  been  Distinguished  in  America";  though 
he  also  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Massa 
chusetts  Historical  Society,  having  drawn  up, 
in  1790,  a  plan  of  an  Antiquarian  Society.  At 
first  he  was  a  minister  in  Dover,  New  Hamp 
shire,  where  his  interest  in  local  history  was 
aroused,  and  then  minister  of  the  Federal  Street 
Church  in  Boston.  The  "  History  of  New 
Hampshire "  was  one  of  the  first  attempts  to 
gather  the  scattered  material  lying  hid  in  pri 
vate  secretaries  and  town  houses,  and  use  them 
in  a  connected  whole  as  the  story  of  a  state. 
De  Tocqueville  commended  the  work,  and 
Governor  Wentworth,  who  was  a  conspicuous 
figure  in  the  state  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Revo 
lution,  contributed  facts  of  importance  to  the 
historian,  and,  though  differing  from  the  author 
in  many  particulars,  spoke  highly  of  its  accu 
racy  and  fairness.  The  book  has  been  regarded 
as  authoritative,  and  is  written  with  polish  and 
learning. 


EARLY   WRITERS  AND    HISTORIANS  55 

The  most  ambitious  of  Belknap's  works  was 
the  series  of  biographies  under  the  undiscrimi- 
nating  title,  "  Historical  Account  of  those  Per 
sons  who  have  been  Distinguished  in  America." 
His  aim  was  to  produce  a  sort  of  extended  bio 
graphical  dictionary,  which  should  embrace  the 
biographies  of  "the  discoverers,  adventurers, 
statesmen,  philosophers,  divines,  warriors,  au 
thors,  and  other  remarkable  characters,  com 
prehending  a  recital  of  the  events  connected 
with  their  lives  and  actions."  This  great 
undertaking  was  not  completed,  but  a  sufficient 
number  of  persons  were  treated  to  show  his 
design  and  to  present  their  histories  for  the 
first  time  in  a  series  of  sketches  not  unlike 
Plutarch's  Lives.  The  list  of  names  includes 
the  pre-Columbian  discoverers,  Biron,  Madoc, 
Prince  of  Wales,  and  Zeno,  the  Venetian ;  also 
Columbus,  the  Cabots,  John  Smith,  Bartholo 
mew  Gosnold,  Henry  Hudson,  Francis  Wyatt, 
Miles  Standish,  John  Winthrop,  Calvert,  and 
William  Penn.  Besides  drawing  on  original 
sources  whenever  he  could  get  at  them,  he 
often  visited  distant  points  to  verify  his  state 
ments.  In  preparing  the  account  of  Gosnold, 


56         THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

he  visited  the  island  of  Cuttyhunk  at  the 
entrance  of  Buzzards  Bay,  and  assured  himself 
that  this  was  the  island  on  which  the  discoverer 
lived,  because,  to  his  satisfaction,  he  found  the 
remains  of  Gosnold's  store-house,  as  it  had  been 
described,  "  on  an  islet  in  the  middle  of  a  pond 
of  fresh  water."  This  work  was  the  beginning 
of  the  growth  of  that  historical  consciousness 
on  the  part  of  the  American  people  which 
since  these  early  efforts  has  flourished  so 
extensively. 

"The  Foresters,"  of  Belknap,  published  in 
1796,  was  popular  in  its  day.  It  is  a  humorous 
tale  of  American  history,  not  without  subtlety 
and  wit.  Originally  appearing  in  the  Colum 
bian  Magazine,  it  attracted  attention  and  was 
read  as  an  ingenious  method  of  presenting  the 
writer's  views  on  many  historical  and  political 
topics.  The  different  countries  and  states 
play  their  parts  in  the  story  under  appropriate 
names  :  John  Bull  is,  of  course,  England,  his 
mother  is  the  Church  of  England,  and  his 
wife  is  the  Parliament,  his  brother  Patrick 
being  Ireland.  The  Foresters  represent  Amer 
ica,  Peregrine  Pickle  stands  for  Plymouth  Col- 


EARLY  WRITERS   AND   HISTORIANS  57 

ony,   Peter   Bull-Frog  for   New  York,   Hunter 
Longknife    for    Kentucky,     Black    Cattle    for 
the    Negro    Slaves,   Roger   Carrier  for    Rhode 
Island,    and    Walter    Pipeweed    for    Virginia. 
These    characters    have    their    family    troubles 
and  amusing  adventures,  all  slyly  pointing  to 
genuine  political  and  social  conditions.     John 
Bull  proved  very  good  to  his  friends  "as  long 
as  they  continued  to  be  of   his    mind."     The 
religious    peculiarities    of    Rhode    Island   were 
indicated    when    Roger    took    offence    at    the 
letter    X,    and    desired    to    have    it    expunged 
from    the  alphabet    because  it  was    the   shape 
of    a   cross ;   he   refused   to  do  his    duty  at  a 
military    review    because    there   was   an    X   in 
the  colors.     At  the  same  time  Roger  seemed 
to   have   a   leaning    toward    knavery,    "for   he 
publickly  advertised  that  he  was  ready  to  pay 
his   debts  by  note  of  hand,  subject  to  a  dis 
count,    the    amount    of    which    was    indefinite 
because  continually  increasing."     The  conten 
tion  of  some  of  the  colonists  that  the  Society 
for  the    Propagation   of  the  Gospel,  originally 
formed  to  convert  Indians,  was  using  its  money 
to  win    over   to   the    Church    of   England   the 


58         THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Puritans  was  thus  set  forth,  after  a  description 
of  the  failure  to  propagate  knowledge  among 
the    savages:    "After   some   trials,   which    did 
not  answer  expectation,  Old  Madam  Bull  con 
ceived    that    the    money   which   was    collected 
might    as   well    be    expended   in  teaching   Mr. 
Bull's    own    tenants   a   little    better    manners; 
for   some   of   them  were  rather   awkward   and 
slovenly  in  their  deportment,  while  others  were 
decent  and  devout  in  their  own  way.     Madam, 
as  we  have  before  observed,  was  a  great  zealot 
in    the    cause   of    uniformity,    and   had   a   vast 
influence  over  her  son,  by  virtue  of  which  the 
attention   of  the  club  was  principally  directed 
to  the  promoting   of   this   grand  object.     Ac 
cordingly,   every  one  of   the   tenants  was  fur 
nished   with   a    Bible    and   a    Prayer    Book,    a 
clean  napkin,  basin,  platter,  and  chalice,  with 
a  few  devotional   tracts,   and  some  young  ad 
venturers,  who  had  been  educated  in  the  family, 
were  recommended  as  chaplains;  who  had  also 
by-orders  to  keep  a  look-out   toward  the  sav 
age    animals    when    they   should   fall    in   their 
way."      The    humor    of    "  The    Foresters"    is 
often  strained,  but  is  interesting  for  other  rea- 


EARLY   WRITERS   AND    HISTORIANS  59 

sons  than  the  unwonted  spectacle  of  a  serious 
divine  treating  lightly  the  ponderous  facts  of 
history,  which  in  other  places  he  had  expounded 
with  sufficient  solemnity.  There  is  a  lack  of 
humor,  however,  in  the  bald  statement  found 
in  Belknap's  diary  concerning  an  extremely 
sentimental  fact :  — 

"  June  14.     Preached  at  Ipswich. 

"  June  15.  Preached,  Boston  ;  evening,  mar 
ried. 

"  June  1 8.    Set  out  on  our  return." 

In  the  Revolution,  Dr.  Belknap  was  active 
principally  in  writing  addresses  to  the  people 
of  New  Hampshire  and  to  British  officers. 
When  there  was  resistance  to  the  Boston  Port 
Act,  he  publicly  solicited  aid  by  urging  the 
people  to  help  the  rebellious  ones,  saying, 
"  Shall  not  we,  though  our  ability  is  but  small 
in  proportion  to  theirs,  do  what  we  can  to 
enable  our  brethren,  who  are  foremost  in  the 
conflict,  to  maintain  the  cause  in  which  they 
are  engaged  by  a  firm  and  manly  persever 
ance?"  To  General  Gage  when  his  army  was 
camped  on  Boston  Common  he  appealed,  not 
in  the  most  persuasive  tones :  "  Gentlemen,  I 


60        THE    CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

pity  you,  —  what  have  you  done  to  deserve 
such  disgrace  ?  You  are  sent  over  into  Amer 
ica  for  the  meanest  and  basest  purposes."  In 
sketching  Revolutionary  characters,  especially 
those  whom  he  had  met,  Dr.  Belknap  was 
graphic,  as  is  well  illustrated  by  what  he  said 
of  General  Charles  Lee  :  "  a  perfect  original, 
a  good  scholar  and  soldier,  and  an  odd  genius, 
full  of  fire  and  passion,  and  but  little  good 
manners  ;  a  great  sloven,  wretchedly  profane, 
and  a  great  admirer  of  dogs,  of  which  he  had 
two  at  dinner  with  him."  Dr.  Belknap's  other 
works  were  the  "  Life  of  Isaac  Watts "  and  a 
compilation  of  hymns  called  "  Sacred  Poetry," 
the  principle  of  selection  being  announced  to 
provide  pleasure  to  different  types  of  Chris 
tians,  those  who  do  not  scruple  to  sing  praises 
to  their  Redeemer,  "and  others  whose  tender 
ness  of  conscience  may  oblige  them  to  confine 
their  addresses  to  the  Father  only,  will  find 
no  deficiency  of  matter  suited  to  their  ideas 
of  the  chaste  and  awful  spirit  of  devotion." 

Oliver  Wendell  Holmes  playfully  describes 
himself  as  a  youth  bumping  about  in  a  library 
when  he  was  hardly  taller  than  the  folios  of 


EARLY   WRITERS   AND   HISTORIANS  6 1 

his  father,  whom  he  refers  to  as  a  clergyman 
and  an  author,  his  "Annals  of  America"  hav 
ing  made  him  a  reputation  as  an  accurate  and 
trustworthy  writer.  Abiel  Holmes  (1763-1837), 
preacher  in  Cambridge,  author  of  biographies 
and  histories,  and  published  discourses,  and 
sometimes  poems,  was  all  of  this,  "an  accu 
rate  and  trustworthy  writer  "  ;  and  more,  for  he 
was  a  wise  father  and  a  pioneer  in  the  field  of 
the  study  of  the  complete  history  of  America. 
There  are  sage  letters  of  advice  to  his  son, 
Oliver  Wendell,  that  prove  his  judgment;  and 
the  career  of  the  son  shows  that  the  instruction 
was  heeded.  When  the  future  wit  and  poet 
was  at  school  in  Andover,  he  may  have  smiled 
at  the  stateliness  of  his  father's  tone  in  the 
letters  he  received,  but  he  was  careful  to  listen 
to  the  admonition.  Dr.  Abiel  Holmes  was, 
however,  one  of  the  most  "  delightful  of  sunny 
old  men/'  and  though  the  son  met  in  his 
father's  house  some  "  ministers  with  meagre 
throats  and  a  funeral  service  in  their  physiog 
nomies,"  he  also  knew  those  who  spoke  "as 
living  men  to  living  men,"  not  all  his  minis 
terial  acquaintances  being  of  the  sort  who  prided 


62         THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

themselves  on  discoursing  "as   dying   men   to 
dying  men." 

It  was  in  preparing  the  "  Life  of  Ezra  Stiles  " 
that  Abiel  Holmes  first  became  engrossed  in 
literary  studies.  He  had  married  the  daughter 
of  Dr.  Stiles,  and  received  possession  of  the 
manuscripts  of  the  learned  President  of  Yale 
on  his  decease.  After  this  he  wrote  "The 
History  of  Cambridge,"  a  description  of  the 
soil,  the  trees,  the  river,  the  churches,  and  Har 
vard  University,  with  an  account  of  each  build 
ing,  not  omitting  to  mention  the  first  license 
for  an  inn  "to  sell  beare  and  bread  for  enter 
tainment  of  strangers,  and  the  good  of  the 
town."  The  volume  concludes  with  biographi 
cal  sketches  of  the  ministers  of  Cambridge, 
especially  Thomas  Hooker,  Samuel  Stone,  Will 
iam  Brattle,  and  Nathaniel  Appleton.  The  great 
book  of  his  life,  however,  was  "The  Annals  of 
America"  from  the  days  of  Columbus  to  1826, 
the  date  of  the  last  edition  of  the  work.  The 
project  of  writing  such  a  comprehensive  his 
tory  was  formed  when  he  learned  that  no  such 
attempt  had  been  made  before  in  the  domain 
of  American  history.  There  had  been  separate 


EARLY   WRITERS   AND    HISTORIANS  63 

histories  of  special  localities  and  phases  of 
American  life,  but  this  work  of  Dr.  Abiel 
Holmes  may  be  considered  the  genuine  fore 
runner  of  Bancroft's  "  History  of  the  United 
States."  "  While  local  histories  of  particular 
portions  of  America  have  been  written,"  writes 
Abiel  Holmes,  "no  attempt  has  been  made  to 
give  even  the  outline  of  its  entire  history." 
None  knew  better  than  the  author  how  difficult 
a  task  was  his  in  the  effort  to  include  within  one 
work  the  events  of  several  centuries,  and  he  was 
modestly  satisfied  should  the  volumes  serve  as 
an  "  index  to  the  principal  sources  of  Ameri 
can  history."  The  work  was  well  received  in 
America ;  and  an  English  reviewer  said,  "  It 
displays  great  industry  and  research,  and  is 
peculiarly  valuable,"  though  it  called  forth  the 
usual  British  sarcasms  and  misrepresentations 
that  then  assailed  any  venture  into  the  realm  of 
American  letters.  Dr.  Abiel  Holmes  pleaded 
in  answer  that  there  be  "no  party  in  the  Re 
public  of  Letters."  The  term  "Annals"  indi 
cates  the  character  of  the  history.  It  relates 
in  chronological  order  events,  without  show 
ing  much  logical  connection  between  them, 


64        THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

the  influence  of  cause  and  effect  on  the  prog 
ress  of  history  being  not  so  well  understood 
then  as  now.  It  would  be  called,  judged  by 
modern  methods,  fragmentary,  because  it  can 
hardly  be  said  to  be  welded  into  a  whole. 
There  are  many  series  of  facts  given  like  the 
following :  — 

"1719.  The  first  number  of  the  Boston 
Gazette  was  printed  at  Boston,  and  the  Weekly 
Mercury  at  Philadelphia. 

"  The  first  Presbyterian  church  in  New  York 
was  founded  this  year. 

"The  Aurora  Borealis  was  first  seen  in  New 
England  on  the  i/th  of  December." 

The  historical  work  of  Dr.  Abiel  Holmes 
found  another  outlet  through  the  Massachusetts 
Historical  Society,  of  which  he  was  for  some 
time  corresponding  secretary.  The  records 
contain  several  of  his  contributions,  notably 
a  curious  "  Memoir  of  the  French  Protestants, 
who  settled  in  Oxford,  Mass.,  in  1686,"  and 
the  "  Memoir  of  the  Mohegan  Indians."  His 
printed  sermons  usually  deal  with  historical 
subjects,  the  address  before  the  American 
Antiquarian  Society  in  1814  being  of  this  char- 


EARLY   WRITERS   AND   HISTORIANS  65 

acter,  as  also  the  two  discourses,  December  24, 
1820,  on  "The  Completion  of  the  Second  Cen 
tury  from  the  Landing  of  the  Forefathers 
of  New  England  at  Plymouth."  Two  of  the 
important  sermons  of  Dr.  Holmes  were  occa 
sioned  by  the  death  of  General  Washington. 
He  preached  one  almost  immediately  after  the 
death  of  Washington,  and  the  other  on  Feb 
ruary  22,  1800.  The  first  was  a  general 
estimate  of  Washington's  character,  and  the 
other,  "  Recommending  the  Counsel  of  Wash 
ington."  After  comparing  the  great  President 
to  "Camillus  flying  to  defend  the  Capital," 
"  Cato  ready  to  devote  his  fortune  and  his  life 
to  the  salvation  of  his  country,"  and  "  Cincin- 
natus  returning  from  the  camp  to  the  farm,"  he 
adds,  "  In  the  peculiar  situation  of  our  infant 
country,  the  wisdom  of  Washington  was  better 
than  weapons  of  war  "  :  he  was  also  character 
ized  as  "deliberate,  without  perplexity;  calm, 
without  apathy  ;  animated,  without  enthusiasm  ; 
decisive,  without  pertinacity ;  and  bold,  without 
temerity."  The  counsels  of  Washington  recom 
mended,  were  for  unity  of  government  with  no 
geographical  discriminations,  good  faith  and 


66        THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

justice  toward  all  nations  and  regard  to  moral 
and  religious  duties. 

There  was  one  side  of  Dr.  Abiel  Holmes's 
nature  which  few  recall,  but  which  has  a  pecul 
iar  interest  because  of  the  genius  of  his  son. 
There  survives  a  little  time-stained  book,  called 
"  A  Family  Tablet,"  containing  some  of  his 
verses  and  others  by  friends,  which  he  col 
lected.  The  poetry  is  not  of  great  merit,  but 
displays  at  least  a  love  for  versification.  The 
author  of  "  The  Autocrat "  and  "  Elsie  Ven- 
ner  "  believed  so  fully  in  the  doctrine  of  hered 
ity  that  it  is  not  without  its  suggestiveness  to 
run  across  such  a  little  book  of  verse  emanat 
ing  from  his  father.  The  dignified  historian 
enjoyed  the  writing  of  serious  and  occasional 
verse  almost  as  much  as  his  son.  It  is  natural 
to  find  him  writing  a  hymn  at  sea,  singing :  — 

"Who  here  can  cast  his  eyes  abroad, 
And  not  adore  the  eternal  God  ? 
Vast  are  the  products  of  His  skill, 
Nor  aught  can  stay  His  sovereign  will." 

A  reflection  on  the  flight  of  life  is  like  the 
setting  to  rhyme  of  sentences  from  a  sermon. 
But  it  is  altogether  delightful  to  hear  him 


EARLY    WRITERS   AND    HISTORIANS  67 

writing  to  his  sweetheart,  thanking  her  for  the 
gift  of  a  jonquil :  — 

"  What  magic  art  hath  taught  thee  thus  to  live  ? 
What  hand  but  Myra's  could  thy  bloom  revive  ? 
Sweet  lovely  flower  !  by  that  fair  nymph  caressed, 
Myron  thrice  welcome  hails  thee  to  his  breast ; 
Here  all  thy  verdure,  all  thy  sweets  display, 
Bloom  while  she  smiles  ;  and  when  she  frowns  decay." 

It  is  not  surprising  that  the  episode  of  the 
jonquil  was  followed  by  other  verses  that  com 
plete  the  story,  in  which  the  Puritan  divine 
shows  decided  human  traits.  Though  calling 

himself 

"  Fittest  for  a  hermit's  cell," 

he  yet  exclaimed  :  — 

"  Now  I  know  true  happiness, 
For  I  come  with  thee  to  dwell." 

William  White  (1770-1836),  minister  of  the 
Church  of  England  in  Philadelphia  before  the 
Revolution  and  after  it  Bishop  of  Pennsyl 
vania,  has  left  a  valuable  historical  record,  in 
his  "  Memoirs  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  in  the  United  States  of  America," 
and  of  certain  religious  causes  that  influenced 
the  separation  of  the  colonies  from  England. 


68         THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

The  Church  of  England  parishes  in  America 
before  the  Revolution  were  dependent,  in  many 
instances,  entirely  on  the  support  of  the  So 
ciety  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel ;  and 
in  their  feeble  condition  appealed  often  to  the 
Mother  Church  to  have  a  bishop  set  over  them, 
since  without  such  Episcopal  oversight  there 
was  no  method  of  discipline,  and  young  men 
seeking  the  ministry  were  compelled  to  cross 
the  ocean  for  ordination.  From  New  England 
and  Virginia  petitions  were  from  time  to  time 
sent  asking  for  an  American  bishop.  These 
requests  created  much  opposition  in  America, 
for  the  Puritans  especially  were  strenuously 
opposed  to  the  presence  of  such  an  ecclesiastic. 
Hot  controversies  raged  over  this  question, 
started  in  the  first  instance  by  Jonathan  May- 
hew,  the  vigorous  and  outspoken  minister  of 
Boston.  Newspapers  and  pamphlets  soon  en 
gaged  in  the  controversy  ;  and  pictures  of  a 
tyrannical  and  revenue-absorbing  bishop  ex 
ercising  jurisdiction  in  territory  that  was  felt 
to  be  forever  secure  from  such  intrusion  were 
painted  in  vivid  colors.  Many  took  alarm. 
Samuel  Adams  wrote  in  1768  expressing  the 


EARLY   WRITERS  AND   HISTORIANS          69 

hope  that  "such  an  establishment  will  never 
take  place  in  America.  .  .  .  The  revenue  raised 
in  America  for  aught  we  can  tell  may  be  as 
constitutionally  applied  toward  the  support  of 
prelacy  as  of  soldiers  and  pensioners."  When 
Archbishop  Seeker  answered,  showing  that  if 
the  English  church  should  send  a  bishop  there 
was  no  intention  of  making  him  other  than  a 
spiritual  leader  of  his  own  people,  there  was 
the  retort:  "You  see  how  we  are  cajoled. 
A  colony  bishop  is  to  be  a  more  innocent  crea 
ture  than  ever  a  bishop  was  since  diocesan 
bishops  were  introduced  to  lord  it  over  God's 
heritage.  .  .  .  The  arrival  of  a  bishop  would 
raise  them  [the  people]  as  much  as  any  one 
thing."  No  bishop  was  sent,  but  the  political 
ferment  caused  by  the  suggestion  served  to 
increase  the  bitterness  between  Britain  and 
the  colonies.  As  William  White  indicates,  the 
failure  to  send  a  bishop  to  America  was  not 
due  entirely  to  opposition  from  the  colonies, 
but,  as  he  says,  "any  ministry,  who  should 
have  ventured  on  the  measure,  would  have 
raised  up  against  themselves  the  whole  of  the 
dissenting  interest  in  England ;  and  the  weight 


70        THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

of  that  interest  was  more   important  to  them, 
in  their  estimation,  than  the  making  of  a  party 
for  the  mother  country  in  the  colonies."     As 
to  the  motives   of   both    sides,  William  White 
justly  says  :  "The  Episcopal  clergy  disclaimed 
the  designs  and  the  expectations  of  which  they 
were  accused;  and   as  the  same  was  done   by 
their  advocates  on  the  other  side  of  the  water, 
particularly  by  the  principal  of  them,  the  great 
and    good   Archbishop    Seeker,    they  ought   to 
be  supposed  to  have  had  in  view  an  Episcopacy 
purely  religious.     On  the  other  hand,  as  their 
opponents    laid    aside  their   resistance   of    the 
religious  part  of  it,  as  soon  as  American  inde 
pendence    had    done    away    with    all    political 
danger,    if  it  existed,  it  ought   to   be   believed 
that   in    their    former    professed    apprehension 
they  were  sincere." 

The  " Memoirs"  relate  in  a  most  interest 
ing  way  the  method  by  which  the  author  and 
Dr.  Provoost,  after  the  Revolution,  went  to 
England  and  were  consecrated  bishops  in  the 
chapel  of  Lambeth  Palace  on  February  4,  1787. 
They  were  delightfully  entertained  by  Arch 
bishop  Moore ;  and  John  Adams,  the  Ameri- 


EARLY   WRITERS  AND   HISTORIANS  71 

can  Minister,  forgetting  his  former  prejudice, 
did  all  in  his  power  to  bring  their  mission 
to  a  successful  issue,  even  suggesting  that  if 
they  failed  in  securing  their  consecration  from 
the  English  bishops,  they  might  receive  the 
same  from  the  bishops  in  Denmark. 

The  book  is  written  in  a  spirit  of  fairness, 
and  gives  valuable  papers  relating  to  Amer 
ican  history  in  the  "Appendix  of  original 
papers."  Bishop  White  wrote  many  other 
books  and  pamphlets,  principally  dealing  with 
religious  topics.  He  was  a  friend  of  Washing 
ton,  Franklin,  and  Dr.  Priestley,  with  whom 
he  corresponded.  Though  a  clergyman  of  the 
Church  of  England,  when  the  Revolution  broke 
out  he  was  among  the  first  to  take  the  oath 
of  allegiance  to  the  new  government.  A  gen 
tleman  standing  by  intimated  by  a  gesture 
the  danger  he  was  exposing  himself  to.  "I 
perceived  by  your  gesture,"  he  replied,  "that 
you  thought  I  was  exposing  my  neck  to  great 
danger  by  the  step  which  I  have  taken.  But 
I  have  not  taken  it  without  full  deliberation. 
I  know  my  danger,  and  that  it  is  greater  on 
account  of  my  being  a  clergyman  of  the  Church 


72         THE   CLERGY    IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

of  England.     But  I  trust  in  Providence.     The 
cause  is  a  just  one,  and   I  am  persuaded  will 
be  protected."     He  faithfully  served  as   chap 
lain   of   Congress  and  was  always  true   to  the 
American  cause.     As   the  venerable  bishop   of 
his    diocese,   he  was    beloved   by  all,   at   times 
showing  unusual  sympathy  and  courage  ;  when 
the    Asiatic    cholera    claimed    many  victims  in 
Philadelphia  in  1832,  he  ministered  to  the  sick 
and  dying,  regardless  of  any  fear  of  contagion. 
The    appreciation    of    the    people    was    shown 
when  his    portrait    was  hung  in  Independence 
Hall  by  the  side  of  Lafayette  and  Washington. 
One   of   the    most   voluminous  of    American 
writers    was    John    Stephens     Cabot     Abbott 
(1805-1877),    who    published    over  fifty   books, 
on    moral    and    religious    subjects,    but    chiefly 
historical.       He    was    a     hard-working     parish 
minister  for  many  years,  serving  five  different 
parishes,  notably  at    Worcester,  Roxbury,  and 
New  Haven.     Almost  from  the  first  he  began 
writing  books  in  addition  to  the  weekly  sermon, 
the  earliest  being  "The  Mother  at  Home,"  in 
which,    with    a    clergyman's    insight    into    the 
need  of  moral  training  in  the  home,  he  wrote 


EARLY   WRITERS   AND   HISTORIANS  73 

familiarly  on  the  duties  of  motherhood  in  rela 
tion  to  the  children.  This  book  was  translated 
into  many  languages  and  was  used  freely  by 
missionaries  in  their  distant  labors.  His  at 
tention,  however,  was  soon  turned  to  historical 
subjects.  Feeling  that  a  knowledge  of  great 
men  and  deeds  of  our  own  land  and  of  other 
countries  was  a  stimulus  to  character,  Abbott's 
aim  was  to  popularize  history  by  presenting  in 
a  readable  form  the  important  events  in  the 
lives  of  individuals  and  nations.  He  was  not 
the  erudite  historian  writing  for  scholars,  but 
he  had  a  mind  for  the  picturesque  and  striking 
fact  which  might  lodge  in  the  people's  thought 
through  the  simple  medium  of  biographical 
stories,  though  he  was  also  fond  of  quoting 
Lamartine's  remark  that  "the  impartiality  of 
history  is  not  like  that  of  a  mirror  which 
merely  reflects  objects;  it  should  be  that 
of  a  judge  who  sees,  listens,  and  decides." 
His  power  of  historical  imagination,  combined 
with  a  delicate  moral  sense,  enabled  him  to 
write  for  the  people,  though  his  judgment  was 
not  always  to  be  relied  upon  because  of  his 
prejudices. 


74        THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

The  method  and  extent  of  Abbott's  literary 
work  is  well  shown  in  a  letter  which  he  wrote 
in  1870,  and  illustrates  the  regular  habit  of  his 
life.  "I  have  full  charge  of  not  a  small  par 
ish,"  he  said,  "with  all  its  pulpit  and  parochial 
labors  ;  it  is  a  rule  with  me  to  prepare  one  new 
sermon  every  week.  In  addition  to  this  I  pre 
pare  a  monthly  article  of  twenty  pages  for 
Harper's  Magazine,  and  am  writing  two  books, 
one  on  the  'History  of  Louis  XIV.,'  and  the 
other,  the  '  History  of  the  Christian  Religion.' 
Last  week  I  wrote  the  tenth  chapter  of  this 
history.  I  have  sent  the  first  four  chapters  of 
the  'History  of  Louis  XIV.'  to  Harpers,  and 
have  four  other  chapters  completed."  In  this 
methodical  way  he  produced  those  graphic 
accounts  of  pioneer  life,  "Kit  Carson"  and 
"Daniel  Boone,"  and  the  valuable  series  of 
American  pioneers  and  patriots,  including 
"  Ferdinand  de  Soto "  and  "Benjamin  Frank 
lin."  His  foreign  histories  were  numerous, 
making  in  all  a  formidable  list:  "The  Empire 
of  Austria,"  "  History  of  Frederick  the  Great," 
"  History  of  Henry  the  Fourth,  King  of  France 
and  Navarre,"  "History  of  Josephine,"  "His- 


EARLY   WRITERS   AND    HISTORIANS  75 

tory  of  Madame  Roland,"  "  History  of  Hernando 
Cortez,"  and  many  others  of  similar  character. 
"The  Romance  of  Spanish  History"  has  al 
ways  been  considered  one  of  his  best  books. 
Among  his  American  books  must  be  mentioned 
the  "Lives  of  the  Presidents  of  the  United 
States  "  and  the  "  History  of  the  Civil  War." 
"  The  History  of  Napoleon "  caused  a  good 
deal  of  controversy,  because  in  dealing  with  the 
character  of  the  Emperor  he  was  greatly  influ 
enced  by  English  prejudices  and  failed  to  enter 
with  any  sympathy  either  into  Napoleon's  mo 
tives  or  accomplishments.  The  book  has  not 
the  judicial  fairness  of  the  calm  student.  Cov 
ering  such  a  wide  field  of  historical  inquiry,  it 
is  not  surprising  that  many  of  his  books  are  at 
times  superficial  and  run  the  risk  of  the  popular 
writer  of  over-emphasizing  dramatic  details  and 
neglecting  the  subtle  play  of  cause  and  effect. 
Abbott  was  a  strong  anti-slavery  man,  as 
is  seen  in  his  pleasant  book  of  travels,  "  South 
and  North,  or  Impressions  received  during  a 
Trip  to  Cuba  and  the  South."  But  his  most 
valuable  contribution  to  the  cause  of  freedom 
was  the  "  History  of  the  Civil  War,"  published 


76        THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

contemporaneously  with  the  war,  comprising 
a  full  account  of  its  origin  and  progress.  In 
the  earlier  volumes  it  was  most  important  to 
have  an  interpretation  put  upon  the  events  of 
the  conflict  which  would  inspire  men  to  uphold 
the  Lincoln  administration  in  the  course  that 
was  being  pursued ;  and  doubtless  the  many 
who  read  the  book  were  led  to  continued 
efforts  and  were  given  a  clearer  thought  of  the 
reasons  for  the  conflict.  He  taught  that  the 
war  was  a  "  conflict  between  aristocratic  usurpa 
tion  and  popular  rights."  In  answer  to  the 
cry  for  peace  and  a  willingness  to  let  the 
South  go,  he  exclaimed :  "  Better  let  the  slave 
holders  go !  This  is  the  dotage  of  amiability. 
There  is  not  an  intelligent  man,  North  or  South, 
who  does  not  know  that  separation  is  eternal 
war.  Who  will  fix  the  boundaries  ?  ...  It  is 
impossible  for  two  different  nations  to  live 
side  by  side.  Either  slavery  must  be  dominant 
on  the  continent  or  freedom." 

Jacob  Abbott,  the  brother  of  John  Stephens 
Cabot  Abbott,  though  better  known  as  a  teacher 
and  writer  for  the  young,  was  the  author  of 
many  historical  books  of  importance.  His 


EARLY  WRITERS  AND   HISTORIANS  77 

occupation  as  a  teacher  doubtless  first  inter 
ested  him  in  juvenile  literature,  and  his  profes 
sion  as  a  minister  led  him  to  consider  the  best 
methods  for  moral  training.  The  Rollo  Books 
and  the  Lucy  Books  were  widely  read,  and 
stimulated  the  minds  of  young  people  to  seek 
knowledge  and  good  living.  Rollo  at  work, 
at  play,  on  his  vacations  and  travels,  in  his 
experiments  and  forming  his  museum,  was  a 
very  real  character  to  the  children  of  a  former 
generation.  Rollo's  philosophy  and  code  of 
morals  dealt  with  questions  of  daily  ethics  and 
inculcated  excellent  principles  as  a  foundation 
for  early  manhood.  Jacob  Abbott's  "  Lecture 
on  Moral  Education"  and  "The  Young  Chris 
tian  "  carried  out  the  same  general  plan  of  en 
forcing  ethical  training  in  addition  to  the 
education  which  consisted  in  the  accumula 
tion  of  facts.  The  books  were  all  interesting 
because  they  explained  principles  by  many 
illustrations  and  explanations,  —  the  illustra 
tions  at  times  being  too  diffuse  perhaps,  and 
the  applications  were  occasionally  vague.  The 
germ  of  later  educational  methods  is  to  be  dis 
covered  in  them,  but  in  their  day  they  were 


/8        THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

valuable  possessions  for  the  children,  and  aids 
to  those  who  had  to  teach.  Juvenile  literature 
is  by  no  means  an  insignificant  part  of  general 
literature  because  of  its  influence  at  a  formative 
stage  of  life ;  and  those,  like  Jacob  Abbott, 
who  seized  upon  it  as  a  medium  for  reach 
ing  the  young  in  a  bright  and  wholesome 
way,  have  contributed  to  the  well-being  of 
society. 

The  historical  books  of  Jacob  Abbott  were 
written  as  much  with  the  object  of  instruction 
as  the  desire  to  find  the  truth.  They  therefore 
bear  the  marks  of  the  schoolmaster,  and  can 
hardly  be  called  independent  researches,  though 
they  are  always  accurate,  full,  and  entertaining. 
The  "History  of  Cyrus  the  Great"  and  the 
"History  of  Alexander  the  Great"  are  much 
more  than  school  books.  They  draw  upon  origi 
nal  sources  of  information,  and  present  the  lives 
of  these  kings  in  the  true  historical  setting, 
with  a  vast  amount  of  picturesque  detail.  The 
"History  of  King  Richard  the  Third  of  Eng 
land,"  "History  of  Mary  Queen  of  Scots," 
"  History  of  Queen  Elizabeth,"  and  "  History  of 
Peter  the  Great"  in  different  ways  illustrate 


EARLY   WRITERS  AND   HISTORIANS  79 

the  same  painstaking  care,  and  create  a  vivid 
impression  of  the  characters  described.  In  the 
account  of  Peter  the  Great  the  relations  between 
the  Czar  and  his  son  Alexis  are  very  dramati 
cally  told,  and  when  the  dissolute  youth  is  led 
to  conspire  against  the  throne  and  finally  cap 
tured  and  condemned  to  death,  the  forgiveness 
of  the  father  is  brought  out  in  strong  contrast 
to  the  viciousness  of  the  son.  In  the  same 
general  style,  but  with  more  completeness,  the 
series  of  American  Histories,  containing  accounts 
in  separate  volumes  of  the  discovery  of  America, 
the  Southern  and  Northern  colonies,  the  two 
colonial  wars,  and  the  revolt  of  the  colonies,  is  a 
presentation  of  facts  with  an  examination  into 
causes  and  effects.  The  schoolmaster  and  the 
moralist  are  perhaps  too  much  in  evidence  to 
make  the  books  more  than  handbooks  and  com- 
pendiums,  though  there  are  often  many  passages, 
especially  in  setting  forth  the  principles  of  gov 
ernment  and  the  differences  between  European 
and  American  ideas,  that  suggest  the  accom 
plished  historian.  The  quality  of  the  books, 
however,  was  determined  by  the  author's  aim  to 
make  the  work  "  useful  to  the  young  in  awaken- 


80        THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN    LETTERS 

ing  in  their  minds  an  interest  in  the  history  of 
their  country."  A  good  object,  no  doubt;  and 
one  must  not  complain  if  the  adult  reader  does 
not  always  find  that  largeness  of  view  and  rapid 
character  sketching  which  lend  a  charm  to  the 
historian's  craft.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
thoughtful  student  will  have  enjoyment  in 
reading  Jacob  Abbott's  "New  England  and 
her  Institutions,"  where,  with  humor  and  anec 
dote,  the  story  of  the  social  life  and  institu 
tions  that  are  passing  away  is  told  with  the 
freshness  of  personal  knowledge  and  reminis 
cence. 

It  is  not  with  entire   justice   to   his   career 

Crofcf-tAI 
that    John    Graham    Palfrey   (1796-1881)   can 

be  included  among  the  clerical  historians.  It 
is  true  that  he  was  at  one  time  a  minister  in 
the  Unitarian  church,  and  professor  of  Sacred 
Literature  in  Harvard,  and  Dean  of  the  Theo 
logical  Faculty,  but  his  subsequent  career  as 
a  member  of  Congress,  Secretary  of  State  of 
Massachusetts,  and  postmaster  of  Boston,  was 
so  different  from  his  earlier  life,  that  it  is  diffi 
cult  to  associate  him  with  the  ministerial  pro 
fession.  However,  he  has  left  many  important 


EARLY  WRITERS  AND   HISTORIANS          8 1 

sermons ;  and  the  books  on  the  "  Elements  of 
Chaldee "  and  "  Relation  between  Judaism  and 
Christianity"  are  a  sufficient  reminder  of  a 
ministry  of  some  importance.  His  "  Papers  on 
the  Slave  Power,"  and  speeches  on  the  "  Politi 
cal  Aspect  of  the  Slave  Question "  delivered 
in  Congress  and  widely  read,  indicated  that  the 
same  lofty  morality  that  he  preached  from 
the  pulpit  did  not  desert  him  when  he  entered 
the  political  arena.  As  a  historian,  especially 
in  his  "  History  of  New  England,"  he  stands 
easily  first  among  those  of  the  clergy  who 
have  written  history.  The  accuracy  of  his 
knowledge,  the  justice  of  his  opinions,  and  the 
pictorial  effects  of  his  work,  were  such  that 
Lowell  was  moved  to  say  of  his  "  History  of 
New  England"  that  "it  is  little  to  say  that  his 
work  is  the  only  one  of  its  kind.  He  has  done 
it  so  well,  that  it  is  likely  to  remain  so ; "  and 
commenting  on  him  as  a  historian,  Lowell 
adds,  "Patient,  thoughtful,  exact,  and  with 
those  sensitive  moral  sympathies  which  are 
worth  more  than  all  else  to  a  historian,  he  has 
added  to  our  stock  of  truth,  and  has  helped  us 
in  the  way  of  right  thinking." 


82         THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Octavius  Brooks  Frothingham  (1822-1895), 
as  the  historian  of  Transcendentalism  and  the 
biographer  of  Theodore  Parker,  George  Ripley, 
and  William  Henry  Channing,  has  a  place  in 
the  list  of  clerical  historians.  He  was  a  suc 
cessful  preacher  to  a  large  congregation  in 
Masonic  Hall,  New  York  City,  and  a  man 
deeply  interested  in  the  spread  of  liberal 
theology ;  but  literature  claimed  his  most 
serious  work,  in  which  he  was  an  indefati 
gable  student  and  preacher.  The  "  History  of 
Transcendentalism  in  New  England"  is  an 
authoritative  account  of  the  historical  move 
ments  that  preceded  the  rise  in  New  Eng 
land  of  the  philosophy  that  came  to  its  flower 
in  Emerson  and  found  an  interpreter  in  Theo 
dore  Parker  and  the  more  liberal  wing  of 
Unitarianism.  One  will  have  to  look  far  for 
a  better  or  more  appreciative  analysis  of  the 
thought  and  character  of  Emerson  than  that 
given  by  Frothingham.  The  "  Life  of  George 
Ripley"  is  a  model  of  careful  biography,  and 
contains,  besides,  one  of  the  best  brief  descrip 
tions  to  be  found  anywhere  of  "Brook  Farm." 
The  most  apparent  fault  of  his  style  is  perhaps 


EARLY   WRITERS   AND   HISTORIANS  83 

the  lack  of  a  sense  of  proportion,  and  the 
exaggeration  of  the  importance  of  details,  which, 
however,  often  explain  and  make  more  vivid 
the  persons  and  events  about  which  he  is 
writing. 


CHAPTER   III 

POETRY    AND    ROMANCE 

FROM  the  accurate  statement  of  facts  and 
the  record  of  past  history,  the  clergyman  often 
turned  to  the  more  imaginative  and  lighter 
literary  forms  of  expression  in  sonnet,  ballad, 
and  even  the  measured  lines  of  the  epic. 
Poetic  ability  is  sometimes  discerned  in  the  illus 
trations  and  similes  used  in  the  sermon,  but 
there  it  was  necessarily  limited  in  scope  and 
force ;  and,  struggling  to  embody  itself  in  the 
recognized  methods  of  verse,  it  often  sang  its 
way  into  a  quatrain  or  a  hymn.  The  clergy 
have  always  been  fond  of  the  poets,  storing 
up  a  phrase  or  a  couplet  to  lend  greater  beauty 
and  power  to  the  truth  which  they  have  set 
forth.  Horace  and  Milton  were  read,  not 
only  with  the  interest  of  the  teacher,  but 
because  of  a  message  to  the  imagination,  which 
loosed  the  play  of  fancy  and  created  a  music 
84, 


POETRY  AND   ROMANCE  85 

within,  seeking  an  outlet  in  verse.  There 
have  been  many  of  the  clergy  who,  in  moments 
of  special  feeling,  or  to  commemorate  impor 
tant  events,  to  stir  up  patriotism,  or  to  aid  in 
worship,  have  written  lines  that  bear  within 
them  the  human  emotions  of  passion,  devotion, 
and  reverence.  Timothy  Dwight  joined  the 
band  of  poets  by  writing  odes  and  songs,  as 
well  as  the  ambitious  epics,  "  The  Conquest  of 
Canaan"  and  "Greenfield  Hill."  John  Pier- 
pont  by  his  "  Airs  of  Palestine "  and  anti- 
slavery  verses  entered  into  the  sacred  company. 
Rufus  Wilmot  Griswold,  by  his  book  of  poems, 
but  more  especially  by  his  contributions  to 
the  study  of  poetry  in  his  "  Poets  and  Poetry 
of  America"  and  "Female  Poets  of  America," 
rendered  service  to  the  cause.  William  Cros- 
well,  George  Washington  Doane,  Robert  Traill 
Spence  Lowell,  Abram  Joseph  Ryan,  and 
Arthur  Cleveland  Coxe,  all  laid  their  tribute 
of  verse  at  the  shrine  of  the  muses. 

John  Pierpont  (1785-1866),  sometime  minis 
ter  of  Hollis  Street  Church,  Boston,  was  so 
great  a  reformer  in  matters  of  temperance  and 
slavery,  that  the  parish  concluded  to  have 


86         THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

milder  sermons  and  less  pronounced  opinions, 
and  were  more  than  willing  to  sever  the  con 
nection  between  people  and  pastor.  After 
serving  various  other  churches,  he  became  a 
chaplain  of  the  Twenty-second  Massachusetts 
Regiment,  and  went  with  it  to  Virginia.  Dur 
ing  a  long  life  he  was  always  ready  with  his 
pen  when  special  events  needed  to  be  cele 
brated  by  the  poet.  At  ordinations,  dedication 
of  churches,  charity  and  temperance  occasions, 
and  funerals,  as  well  as  more  formal  celebra 
tions,  he  made  interesting  contributions  in 
verse  which  were  afterward  collected  into  vol 
umes,  one  of  which  was  the  "Airs  of  Pales 
tine."  Pierpont's  rule  of  action  was  laid  down 
in  a  celebrated  sermon  having  as  a  title,  "A 
Moral  Rule  of  Political  Action,"  and  it  was, 
in  a  word,  summed  up  in  the  statement  that 
"  When  my  party  run  away  from  morality, 
they  run  away  from  me."  His  estimate  of 
Channing  shows  how  his  life  and  thought  had 
been  influenced  by  the  great  preacher :  "  In 
his  love  and  labors  for  humanity,"  he  wrote, 
"  in  his  exalted  conceptions  of  the  dignity  of 
our  nature,  and  the  nobleness  of  our  destiny, 


POETRY   AND    ROMANCE  8/ 

in  his  forgetfulness  of  interests  that  are  merely 
local  and  temporary,  Dr.  Channing  has  bound 
himself  to  the  heart  of  man." 

These  conceptions  of  absolute  morality  and 
nobleness  of  human  nature  appear  in  Pier- 
pont's  verse,  as  they  find  a  place  in  the  ex 
pressed  object  of  his  poetry,  which  he  states 
to  be  "to  rebuke  high-handed  or  under-handed 
wrong,  or  to  keep  alive  the  fires  of  civil  and 
religious  liberty."  The  seriousness  of  his 
strain  comes  out  in  the  poem  read  before 
the  New  England  Society  in  1855,  when  he 
exclaimed :  — 

"  Sons  of  the  Pilgrims !      Need  ye  to  be  told 
It  takes  *  perpetual  shoulders '  to  uphold 
The  exceeding  weight  of  glory  that  is  theirs, 
And  prove  your  title  as  your  fathers'  heirs  ?  " 

More  stirring  are  the  lines  written  for  the 
laying  of  the  corner-stone  of  Bunker  Hill 
monument,  June  17,  1825,  when  the  poet 
makes  Warren  address  his  soldiers  in  words 
familiar  to  the  schoolboys  of  two  generations. 

"  In  the  God  of  battles  trust! 
Die  we  may,  —  and  die  we  must :  — 
But,  O,  where  can  dust  to  dust 


88        THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Be  consigned  so  well, 
As  where  Heaven  its  dews  shall  shed 
On  the  martyred  patriot's  bed, 
And  the  rocks  shall  raise  their  heads, 

Of  his  deeds  to  tell!" 

"  The  Fugitive  Slave's  Apostrophe  to  the 
North  Star"  is  a  poetical  relic  charged  with 
the  spirit  of  contemporary  rhetoric  and  with 
Pierpont's  hatred  for  the  slave  power  and  the 
government  that  upheld  it :  — 

"  At  slavery's  beck,  the  very  hands 
Ye  lift  to  Heaven  to  swear  ye're  free, 
Will  break  a  truce  to  seize  the  lands 

Of  Seminole  or  Cherokee! 
Yea  —  tear  -&flag,  that  Tartar  hordes 
Respect  and  shield  it  with  their  swords." 

In  the  "Airs  of  Palestine"  the  author  turns 
to  the  Hebrew  lyre.  There  is  a  sweetness 
and  charm  about  the  Judean  melody  that 
often  suggests  Bishop  Heber's  verses.  The 
poem  is  not  without  effective  lines.  Pierpont's 
work  on  the  whole  has  intensity  and  smooth 
ness  without  the  art  or  music  to  make  it  great, 
but  there  is  melody  and  tone  in  some  of  it 
which  places  him  in  the  company  of  our  earlier 
poets. 


POETRY  AND   ROMANCE  89 

William  Croswell  (1804-1851)  was  the  rector 
of  old  Christ  Church,  Boston,  from  the  steeple 
of  which  the  lanterns  gave  warning  to  Paul 
Revere,  and  founder  of  the  Church  of  the  Ad 
vent.  He  was  by  nature  delicate  and  refined, 
capable  of  deep  feeling,  warm  in  his  friendships, 
and  devoted  to  his  church.  The  order  and  dig 
nity  of  the  Episcopal  services  with  the  recurring 
anniversaries  of  the  church  year  ever  impressed 
him,  and  he  could  not  help  putting  into  verse 
his  appreciation  and  religious  emotions.  Poetry 
to  him  was  the  occasional  feast  when  he  al 
lowed  himself  to  give  way  to  the  song  and  joy 
in  his  heart.  He  felt  the  spell  of  the  arch 
and  aisle  and  altar  of  the  Christian  church  as 
George  Herbert  felt  it ;  and  as  Keble  set  to 
music  the  teachings  of  the  church  seasons,  so 
he  welcomed  the  holy  day  or  the  saint's  festival 
with  a  poem  of  gratitude.  He  was  thus  almost 
entirely  a  religious  poet,  humble  with  reverence 
and  earnest  in  worship.  The  battle-song  and 
call  to  the  active  duty  of  the  day  in  the  out 
ward  struggle  of  men  are  absent  from  the  medi 
tations  of  the  priest,  but  there  are  hymns  of 
praise,  and  odes  to  mark  friendships,  and  rec- 


9O        THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

ords  of  experiences  of  the  soul.  The  poems 
are  so  simple  often,  and  without  enough  elabo 
ration  to  take  away  a  certain  roughness  at 
times,  that  they  conceal  for  the  moment  the 
serene  and  hopeful  spirit  within  them.  He 
was  so  shy  that  after  having  written  his  vale 
dictory  sonnet  he  was  led  back  again  to  the  art 
only  when  Mrs.  Sigourney  addressed  him  in 
appealing  tones  :  — 

"  Minstrel  return  !     Resume  the  hallowed  strain ; 
Repent  thee  of  thy  sin,  and  woo  Heaven's  harp  again." 

The  little  book  of  Dr.  Croswell's  verses  col 
lected  after  his  death  is  called  "  Poems  Sacred 
and  Secular."  It  contains,  however,  more  of 
the  sacred  than  of  the  secular,  though  there  are 
humor  and  sprightly  rhymes  enough  to  justify 
the  name.  Christmas  and  Advent,  Easter  and 
Whitsunday,  are  celebrated  by  carols  and  medi 
tations.  Holly  berries  and  lilies  form  parts  of 
many  pictures  that  grow  under  the  poet's  touch, 
as  he  sings  of  Christmas  :  — 

"  When  white-robed  altars,  wreathed  in  living  green, 
Adorn  the  temples." 


POETRY  AND   ROMANCE  91 

The  series  of  thirty-four  sonnets  is  the  most 
striking  part  of  the  collection.  The  sonnets 
are  not  always  in  perfect  form  as  regards  the 
Italian  model  of  rhyme  or  arrangement  of 
octave  and  sestette.  Many  of  them  are  good  ; 
a  few  are  excellent,  of  which  number  must  be 
counted  "  Saint  Luke  "  :  — 

"  Blessed  Physician  !  from  thy  ancient  scroll 
Can  we  not  draw  some  wholesome  medicine 
To  heal  the  heart  that  sickens  with  its  sin, 

And  cure  the  deep  distemper  of  the  soul  ? 

Is  there  no  balm  in  Gilead,  to  make  whole 
The  bruised  and  broken  spirit,  and  within 
The  bleeding  bosom  stanch  the  wound  and  win 

The  stubborn  malady  to  its  control?" 

In  "The  Ordinal  "  and  "  Hymns  of  the  Ancient 
Time  "  there  is  a  beautiful  spirit  of  consecration 
and  prayer.  Of  another  kind  are  such  poems  as 
"The  Chapel  Bell,  Yale  College"  and  "Na- 
hant,"  the  one  a  rollicking  undergraduate's 
doggerel  and  the  other  a  half-satirical  descrip 
tive  fragment.  The  description  of  Nahant 
must  have  been  written  before  it  became  a 
fashionable  summer  resort :  — 

"Rocks,  sands,  and  seas. 
What  charms  hast  thou  but  these, 


92        THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

O  desolate  Nahant  ! 
Rocks,  sands,  and  seas, 
Twelve  grotesque  cottages, 
And  six  storm-beaten  trees, 

Struck  all  aslant  !  " 

Robert  Traill  Spence  Lowell  (1816-1891),  a 
brother  of  James  Russell  Lowell,  might  have 
been  known  more  generally  as  a  poet  if  his 
famous  brother  had  stuck  to  prose.  As  it  is, 
Robert  Lowell  is  credited  with  some  books  of 
note  in  the  line  of  fiction,  history,  and  the  short 
story.  His  reputation  was  first  won  by  "  The 
New  Priest  in  Conception  Bay  "  and  sustained 
by  "Antony  Brade "  and  "A  Story  or  Two 
from  an  Old  Dutch  Town,"  but  his  volume  of 
poems  may  be  remembered  the  longest.  Dr. 
Lowell  was  for  some  years  a  minister  of  the 
Church  of  England  at  Bay  Roberts,  Newfound 
land,  and  later  the  Master  of  St.  Mark's  School, 
Southborough,  and  professor  of  Latin  in  Union 
College.  Classical  tastes  and  scholarship  are 
evident  in  his  poetry,  as  also  the  inspiration 
from  the  rugged  shores  of  Newfoundland.  The 
language  of  the  verses  is  often  vigorous,  and 
their  conception  original.  Of  his  island  home 
he  sings :  — 


POETRY   AND    ROMANCE  93 

"  O  rugged  land  ! 
Land  of  the  rock  moss  ! 
Land  whose  drear  barrens  it  is  woe  to  cross, 
Thou  rough  thing  from  God's  hand  ! " 

In  "The  Delphian  Children,"  the  motive  of 
the  theme  is  Greek.  Parnassus  looms  up, 
wrapped  in  wondrous  clouds,  and  Pythian 
garlands  strew  the  way,  and 

"  Flowers  that  when  thou  art  dead 
Will  ever  be  the  same." 

Religious  feeling  expresses  itself  in  the  reflec 
tive  poems,  "  The  Pitying  Christ "  and  "  Dirge 
to  a  Soul  Departing."  "The  Painter's  Proba 
tion  "  has  force  and  lines  of  strength  :  — 

"  There  comes  in  life  a  frequent  hour, 

When  the  full  voice  of  Fate 
Calls  with  a  dread,  mysterious  power, 

On  those  who  should  be  great ; 
To  warn  them  that  a  mighty  dower 

Somewhere  for  them  doth  wait." 

Of  ballads  there  are  many  that  have  a  pleasant 
swing,  like  "  The  Brave  Old  Ship,  the  Orient," 
"The  Burger's  Lenore,"  and  "The  Men  of  the 
Cumberland."  "The  Relief  of  Lucknow "  is 
well  sustained  and  dramatic  when  the  fever- 


94        THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

stricken  lassie  hears  the  distant  slogan  of  the 
relief  army  before  any  of  the  garrison,  and  cries 
aloud, 

"  The  Highlanders  !  oh  !  dinna  ye  hear 
The  slogan  far  awa'  ? 
The  McGregor's  ?     Ah  !  I  ken  it  weel ; 
It's  the  grandest  o1  them  aV 

During  the  Civil  War  Dr.  Lowell  wrote 
many  songs  to  inspire  the  people  to  carry  on 
what  he  considered  holy  warfare.'  Though  a 
man  of  peace  he  felt  the  sacredness  of  the 
cause  and  the  duty  of  maintaining  the  Union, 
but  his  prayer  was  constant  that  the  baser  mo 
tives  might  be  absent. 

Of  poems  written  on  the  Southern  side, 
there  are  good  illustrations  among  those  of 
Abram  Joseph  Ryan  (1839-1886),  the  Roman 
Catholic  priest,  who  was  a  chaplain  in  the  Con 
federate  army.  Father  Ryan  wrote  verses  of 
a  religious  character,  but  his  heart  was  in  the 
South ;  and  during  the  war,  and  immediately 
after  it,  he  printed  many  poems  which  became 
popular.  These  were  collected  in  the  volume, 
"  Poems,  Patriotic,  Religious,  and  Miscellane 
ous."  They  are  musical  and  show  great  inten- 


POETRY  AND   ROMANCE  95 

sity  of  feeling.  The  modesty  and  simplicity  of 
the  author  are  revealed  when  he  says,  "  Souls 
were  always  more  to  him  than  songs.  .  .  .  But 
still  somehow  —  and  he  could  not  tell  why  —  he 
sometimes  tried  to  sing."  "The  Sword  of  Lee  " 
was  one  of  the  best  known  of  the  poems:  — 

"  Out  of  its  scabbard  where,  full  long, 

It  slumbered  peacefully, 
Roused  from  its  rest  by  the  battle's  song, 
Shielding  the  feeble,  smiting  the  strong, 
Guarding  the  right,  avenging  the  wrong, 

Gleamed  the  sword  of  Lee." 

After  the  defeat  came  "The  Conquered  Ban 
ner,"  which  pathetically  mourned  over  the  for 
tunes  of  war,  and  sang  a  dirge  over  the  fallen 
standard  :  — 

"Furl  that  Banner,  softly,  slowly! 
Treat  it  gently  —  it  is  holy  — 

For  it  droops  above  the  dead. 
Touch  it  not  —  unfold  it  never, 
Let  it  droop  there,  furled  forever, 
For  its  people's  hopes  are  dead." 

Among  Father  Ryan's  verses  are  those  that 
interpret  the  doctrines  and  ritual  of  his  church. 
They  enter  deeply  into  the  spirit  of  worship, 
and  have  about  them  a  touch  of  imagination 


96        THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

and  mysticism.  The  "  Feast  of  the  Sacred 
Heart "  is  a  tender  appreciation  of  the  sacra 
ment,  and  expresses  the  reverence  felt  by  the 
believer :  — 

<4A  silence  falls  on  the  altar  — 

An  awe  on  each  bended  face  — 
For  the  Heart  that  bled  on  Calvary 
Still  beats  in  the  holy  place." 

Rome,  as  the  centre  and  symbol  of  ecclesias 
tical  power,  becomes  to  the  poet  the  centre  of 
the  world  :  — 

"  Beyond  the  Tiber  gleams  a  dome 

Above  the  hill-tops  seven  : 
It  arches  o'er  the  world  from  Rome, 
And  leads  the  world  to  Heaven." 

Ireland,  almost  as  much  as  the  church,  claims 
the  devotion  of  the  priest,  who  suffers  under 
the  wrongs  of  his  native  country,  and  longs  for 
its  release.  The  flag  of  Erin  becomes  to  him 
a  national  ensign,  and  there  cluster  about  it 
the  desires  of  a  people  for  their  independence. 
The  fervor  of  struggle  and  the  passion  of 
unattained  hopes  are  felt  in  many  of  Father 
Ryan's  poems. 

American  hymnology  has  not  been  thoroughly 


POETRY   AND   ROMANCE  97 

studied,  but  enough  is  known  to  justify  the 
assertion  that  this  branch  of  poetry  has  been 
largely  cultivated  among  the  clergy  of  all  de 
nominations.  The  writing  of  hymns  was  of  a 
comparatively  late  date  in  America,  because  of 
the  hostility  in  some  of  the  churches  to  the  use 
even  of  metrical  versions  of  the  Psalms.  The 
psalmody  question  divided  one  church,  the  Pres 
byterian,  many  opposing  the  use  of  Watts'  version 
of  the  Psalms  and  preferring  the  Scotch  psalter. 
The  introduction  of  a  musical  accompaniment  was 
not  an  easy  victory  on  the  part  of  those  who 
wished  to  substitute  something  more  varied  than 
the  traditional  five  tunes  of  Puritan  worship. 
When  an  organ  was  placed  in  King's  Chapel, 
Boston,  it  was  considered  by  many  to  be  un 
godly  and  frivolous ;  and  sarcastic  pamphlets 
asked,  "How  inspired  was  the  music  of  the 
primitive  Christians  compared  with  what  is  now 
used  in  most  of  our  churches  ?  The  organs 
charm  the  ear,  they  ravish  the  heart,  and  carry 
the  souls  of  the  churchmen  in  rapture  to 
heaven." 

Another  reason  that  retarded  the  growth  of 
American  hymnology  was  the  wealth  of  English 


98       THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

hymns  that  could  be  used  in  the  collections 
for  the  different  churches.  Notwithstanding 
these  facts,  there  has  been  a  very  marked  de 
velopment  in  the  writing  of  hymns,  and  among 
those  used  in  the  churches,  more  than  a  seventh 
probably  are  of  American  origin;  of  these  Mr. 
Stedman  remarks  that  "the  religious  verse  of 
America,  whether  the  work  of  poets  at  large  or 
of  those  whose  range  is  chiefly  confined  to  it, 
ranks  in  quality  if  not  in  quantity  with  the 
hymnology  of  other  lands." 

The  hymn  that  wins  its  way  by  the  directness 
of  its  purpose,  its  simplicity,  and  strength  of 
idea  and  rendering,  is  a  powerful  teacher.  As 
a  missionary  it  is  far  more  effective  than  the 
sermon,  because  it  sinks  deeply  into  the  mem 
ory,  and  may  become,  by  one's  voluntary  act 
of  singing  it,  a  living  thing.  The  genuinely 
famous  hymns,  those  that  have  found  their  way 
into  other  lands,  are  not  numerous,  but  they  are 
the  flower  of  American  hymnology.  As  litera 
ture  they  have  a  vital  quality  about  them  which 
gives  them  a  much  greater  influence  than  many 
a  longer  and  more  ambitious  poem.  The  con 
tribution  of  a  song  or  a  hymn  to  the  national 


POETRY  AND   ROMANCE  99 

life  is  one  of  the  surest  paths  to  literary  immor 
tality,  because  patriotism  and  religion  are  uni 
versal  elements.  Among  these  hymns  that  are 
used  by  churches  everywhere  are,  "  My  faith 
looks  up  to  Thee,"  by  Ray  Palmer;  "Stand  up, 
stand  up  for  Jesus,"  by  George  Duffield  ;  "I 
would  not  live  alway,"  by  William  Augustus  Muh- 
lenberg;  George  Washington  Doane's  "  Softly 
now  the  light  of  day"  and  "  Fling  out  the  ban 
ner";  John  Leland's  "The  day  is  past  and 
gone";  "Lord,  lead  the  way  the  Saviour  went," 
of  William  Croswell ;  Edmund  Hamilton  Sears's 
"Calm  on  the  listening  ear  of  night";  and 
"My  Country,  'tis  of  thee "  and  "The  morn 
ing  light  is  breaking,"  by  Samuel  Francis 
Smith. 

Among  most  of  the  denominations,  the 
clergy,  inspired  by  the  genius  of  the  different 
institutions,  have  provided  hymns  which  are 
used  in  their  services.  Those  peculiar  to  the 
special  church  are  used  exclusively  by  that 
church,  and  were  written  to  express  certain 
doctrines  for  which  the  religious  body  stands. 
It  thus  comes  about  that  there  are  various 
types  of  hymnology  that  have  grown  up  in  the 


100     THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

churches,  —  each  has  its  own  familiar  names  of 
hymn  writers. 

The  Quakers,  to  be  sure,  are  without  hymns. 
A  story  is  told  of  an  enterprising  Boston  firm 
of  publishers  that,  having  learned  that  there 
was  no  Quaker  hymn-book,  they  forthwith 
began  to  collect  the  material  for  what  seemed 
to  be  a  good  opening.  They  were  dismayed 
when  they  learned  that  the  Quakers  never 
sing.  Among  the  Presbyterian  hymn  writers 
must  be  mentioned  Samuel  Davies,  President 
of  Princeton,  Thomas  Hastings,  professor  of 
Sacred  Rhetoric  in  Union  Theological  Semi 
nary,  and  Philip  Schaff,  the  church  historian. 
In  addition  to  Mather  Byles  and  Timothy 
Dwight,  the  Congregationalist  hymn  writers 
include  such  men  as  Thomas  Hopkins  Gal- 
laudet,  the  beginner  of  deaf-mute  instruction 
in  America,  John  Brainard,  the  missionary  to 
the  Indians,  Ray  Palmer,  and  Leonard  Bacon. 
The  Episcopal  church  numbers  among  its 
sacred-song  writers  Alexander  Viets  Griswold, 
Bishop  of  Massachusetts,  William  Augustus 
Muhlenberg,  George  Washington  Doane, 
Bishop  of  New  Jersey,  George  Burgess,  Bishop 


POETRY  AND   ROMANCE  ioi 

of  Maine,  Edward  Abiel  Washburn,  and  Ar 
thur  Cleveland  Coxe,  Bishop  of  Western  New 
York.  The  Unitarians  have  many  brilliant 
writers  of  hymns :  Henry  Ware,  Jr.,  Fred 
erick  Henry  Hedge,  Edmund  Hamilton  Sears, 
Chandler  Robbins,  and  Samuel  Longfellow, 
the  brother  and  biographer  of  the  poet  Long 
fellow.  Among  the  Methodist  contributors  to 
American  hymnology  are  Thomas  Hewlings 
Stockton,  William  Hunter,  and  Thomas  Os 
mond  Summers.  The  Baptist  hymn  writers 
include  the  names  of  Thomas  Baldwin,  Adoni- 
ram  Judson,  John  Newton  Brown,  and  George 
Barton  Ide ;  and  among  the  Universalists  must 
be  mentioned  George  Richards,  Hosea  Ballou, 
Abner  Kneeland,  and  Edwin  Hubbell  Chapin. 
These  writers,  in  the  main,  bear  the  marks 
of  the  doctrines  and  history  of  their  special 
churches.  The  Presbyterian  reflects  the  stern 
doctrines  of  the  Westminster  Confession,  the 
Congregationalist  manages  to  set  his  Calvinism 
to  music,  the  Episcopalian  is  interested  in  the 
institution  and  the  Church  Year,  the  Unitarian 
is  under  the  sway  of  Transcendentalism,  the 
Methodist  and  Baptist  are  inspired  by  the 


102      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

emotional  needs  of  the  revival,  and  the  Uni- 
versalist  sets  forth  his  doctrines  in  long  and 
short  metre.  Among  the  large  number  of 
American  hymns  it  is  natural  that  many  should 
be  of  an  ephemeral  character,  being  more  of  the 
nature  of  sacred  songs  than  genuine  hymns, 
without  much  poetic  quality ;  but  there  are 
marked  exceptions,  and  the  list  of  hymns  hav 
ing  in  them  universal  religious  elements  is 
by  no  means  small.  They  are  worthy  to  be 
classed  with  the  Christian  hymns  of  any  age. 
Among  the  writers  of  fiction  in  America,  the 
clergy  have  had  representatives,  though  none  of 
them  attained  the  same  reputation  for  literary 
skill  and  scholarship  as  Charles  Kingsley  in 
England.  The  novels  of  Sylvester  Judd,  Will 
iam  Ware,  Robert  Lowell,  Henry  Ward  Beecher, 
and  Edward  Payson  Roe  were  widely  read  in 
their  day,  and  are  by  no  means  without  strong 
sketches  of  character,  well-ordered  plots,  scenes 
of  beauty,  discussions  of  important  religious  and 
social  questions,  often  with  genuineness  of 
moral  feeling.  The  "  Margaret "  of  Judd,  the 
"Zenobia"  of  Ware,  the  "  New  Priest  in  Con 
ception  Bay"  of  Lowell,  "Norwood"  by  Beecher, 


POETRY  AND   ROMANCE  103 

and  "  Barriers  Burned  Away  "  and  "  What  Can 
She  Do?"  by  Roe  have  a  rightful  place  in 
American  letters. 

Sylvester  Judd  (1813-1853)  was  a  lecturer 
and  author,  serving,  however,  for  the  greater 
part  of  his  life,  as  minister  of  the  Unitarian 
church  in  Augusta,  Maine.  He  was  a  man  of 
strong  convictions,  and  being  influenced  by 
Channing  and  later  by  Transcendentalism,  gave 
voice  to  the  spiritual  aspirations  and  freedom  of 
the  new  movement  in  his  eagerness  for  an 
abundant  life  of  thought  and  feeling.  He  saw 
keenly  the  difference  between  the  old  life  of 
New  England  with  its  crystallized  customs  and 
dogmas,  and  the  new  time  of  growth  and  recon 
struction.  The  struggle  between  the  two  he 
felt  to  be  vital ;  and  while  he,  and  others,  fought 
the  battle  through  sermons  and  treatises,  he 
tried  to  aid  the  cause  by  works  of  fiction  which 
might  reach  out  in  directions  not  touched  by 
the  more  formal  methods.  "Margaret"  and 
"Richard  Edney  and  the  Governor's  Family" 
were  his  two  novels,  while  in  "  Philo :  an 
Evangeliad,"  a  didactic  poem,  he  defended  the 
Unitarian  position,  as  he  did  in  "The  Church; 


104     THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

in  a  series  of  Discourses."  Of  these  books 
"  Margaret "  is  by  far  the  most  significant,  and 
contains  passages  of  great  beauty,  the  full  title 
being,  "  Margaret :  a  Tale  of  the  Real  and 
Ideal,  Blight  and  Bloom  ;  including  sketches  of 
a  place  not  before  described,  called  Mons 
Christi."  The  book  is  a  loosely  constructed 
story  of  New  England  life  between  the  periods 
of  the  Revolution  and  the  more  stable  condition 
of  the  Republic.  Margaret,  a  child  of  nature, 
sensitive  and  mystical,  grows  out  of  her  crude 
and  narrow  surroundings  into  a  woman  of  wide 
vision,  of  faith,  and  philanthropy.  The  direct 
contact  with  nature  and  the  soul  of  all  things 
reveals  to  her  the  beauties  of  the  inner  life  and 
the  spiritual  interpretation  to  be  put  upon  human 
living.  She  has  her  dreams  and  ecstasies  and 
revolts ;  and  at  the  end  tries  to  realize  a  Utopia 
where  men  can  live  in  happiness  without  intem 
perance,  capital  punishment,  or  war.  In  the 
suggested  system  of  festivals  to  be  observed  by 
the  community,  Margaret  anticipates  "  Arbor 
Day,"  when  flowers  and  trees  are  to  be  planted. 
She  is  reared  in  the  home  of  drunken  Pluck  and 
his  satirical  wife,  Brown  Moll ;  and  from  the 


POETRY   AND   ROMANCE  105 

companionship  of  many  of  the  village  charac 
ters,  the  mysterious  infidel  Rose,  Deacon 
Ramsdill,  Parson  Wells  and  his  wife,  and 
Evelyn,  she  passes  through  many  outward  and 
inward  experiences  until  she  becomes  the .  aes 
thetic  and  educational  inspiration  of  the  commu 
nity,  though  the  imaginary  Mons  Christi,  with 
its  symbolic  avenues  and  temples,  remains  in 
the  realm  of  the  ideal. 

The  greatest  interest  of  "  Margaret,"  how 
ever,  is  not  so  much  in  the  book  as  a  whole  as 
in  special  scenes  and  descriptions  of  nature. 
In  these,  Sylvester  Judd  writes  with  the  insight 
of  the  mystic  and  the  poet.  As  the  soul  in  its 
own  strength  essays  to  know  Deity  through 
the  appeals  of  nature  to  the  physical  senses,  so 
Margaret  enters  into  communion  with  the  spirit 
of  nature  through  the  signs  and  symbols  of 
forest,  glade,  stream,  clouds,  and  sunsets.  "  She 
sat  there  alone,"  Judd  writes  of  Margaret  sit 
ting  under  the  open  sky,  "with  no  eye  but 
God's  to  look  upon  her ;  He  alone  saw  her  face, 
her  expression,  in  that  still,  warm,  golden  sun- 
setting  ;  she  sat  as  if  for  her  the  sun  had  gone 
down  and  the  sky  unloosed  its  glory;  she  sat 


106      THE  CLERGY    IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

mute  and  undisturbed  as  if  she  were  the  child- 
queen  of  this  great  pageant  of  nature."  The 
famous  description  of  a  snowstorm  has  in  it 
elements  of  delicacy  and  power,  in  the  contrast 
between  the  winter  night,  with  the  wind  and 
storm,  and  the  housed  family  reading  and  mak 
ing  music  about  the  glowing  hearth.  Margaret, 
going  out  in  the  morning,  entered  the  thick 
woods,  and  "  saw  the  deep,  unalloyed  beauty 
of  the  season  :  the  large  moist  flakes  that  fell 
in  the  morning  had  furred  and  mossed  every 
limb  and  twig,  each  minute  process  and  fila 
ment,  each  aglet  and  thread,  as  if  the  pure 
spirits  of  the  air  had  undertaken  to  frost  the 
trees  for  the  marriage  festival  of  their  prince. 
The  slender  white  birches,  with  silver  bark  and 
ebon  bough,  that  grew  along  the  path,  were 
bent  over;  their  arms  met  intertwiningly,  and 
thus  was  formed  a  perfect  arch,  voluptuous, 
dreamlike,  glittering,  under  which  she  went." 
William  Ware  (1797-1852),  a  Unitarian  min 
ister,  after  preaching  in  New  York  and  else 
where,  gave  up  the  active  labors  of  his  profes 
sion  and  devoted  himself  mainly  to  literature, 
writing  often  for  the  Knickerbocker  Magazine  > 


POETRY   AND   ROMANCE  107 

and  producing  books  of  more  than  temporary 
value.  Ware  had  the  artistic  temperament 
ever  seeking  an  outlet  for  itself  in  drawing,  or 
the  study  of  art,  or  the  writing  of  novels.  As 
Dr.  Bellows  says  in  his  memorial  sermon, 
"Beauty  was  the  innocent  idol  of  his  soul.  His 
mind  was  a  gallery  of  pictures."  William 
Ware's  "  Lectures  on  the  Works  and  Genius  of 
Washington  Allston  "  reveal  this  intense  inter 
est  in  art,  and  indicate  a  sensitive  mind  quick  to 
appreciate  beauty  in  color  and  form,  together 
with  a  large  knowledge  of  historical  and  con 
temporary  art.  He  put  into  literary  form  and 
analysis  the  popular  appreciation  of  Allston's 
work,  marking  the  painter's  characteristics  as 
the  colorist,  the  man  who  is  conscientious  and 
religious  in  a  true  sense,  yet  limited  when 
drawing  the  human  face,  and  attempting  the 
sublime,  which  he  did  not  always  reach.  Per 
haps  Ware's  comparison  between  Allston  and 
Titian  may  seem  eccentric  as  he  says,  "  In  the 
great  Venetian  I  have  found  nothing  more  true, 
nothing  more  beautiful,  nothing  more  perfect 
than  I  have  seen  in  Allston ; "  but  no  one 
would  deny  the  beauty  of  color  and  conception 


108      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

in  Allston's  " Jeremiah,"  "The  Valentine," 
"The  Spanish  Girl,"  and  "Belshazzar."  In  the 
criticism  of  Allston's  work  there  is  a  very  just 
recognition  of  his  earnestness  and  purity  of 
motive,  when  it  is  pointed  out  that  he  made  his 
pictures  because  he  loved  and  honored  his  art 
on  its  own  account :  "  because  through  it,  as  a 
medium,  he  could  express  himself  in  the  best 
way  possible  to  him ;  because  in  this  manner 
only  could  he  reveal  to  others  his  conception  of 
the  beautiful,  the  grand,  the  divine." 

Of  Ware's  novels  the  principal  ones  were 
"  Letters  from  Palmyra,"  sometimes  called 
"Zenobia,"  "  Probus,"  and  "Julian,  or  Scenes 
in  Judea."  In  conception,  they  were  the  fore 
runners  of  such  novels  as  "  Ben  Hur "  and 
"  Quo  Vadis  " ;  they  dealt  mainly  with  the  early 
Christian  period  and  portrayed  the  life  in  Pales 
tine  when  the  New  Testament  characters  were 
making  religious  history.  "Julian"  is  in  the 
form  of  letters  written  from  Judea  immediately 
preceding  and  during  the  public  ministry  of 
Jesus.  Though  many  of  the  scenes  are  ficti 
tious,  the  care  and  scholarship  of  the  author  are 
shown  in  the  accuracy  of  such  details  as  places, 


POETRY  AND    ROMANCE  IOQ 

political  movements,  and  historical  personages. 
The  plot  moves  from  Caesarea  to  Jerusalem  ; 
and  Julian,  the  young  Roman  Jew,  takes  part 
in  the  discussions  and  riots  caused  by  the  Mes 
sianic  expectations  of  the  people.  The  descrip 
tions  are  often  vivid,  and  the  character  study  is 
not  without  ability.  Pilate  appears,  holding  a 
court  in  Caesarea :  "  The  aspect  of  this  man  is 
cold  and  dark.  His  countenance  is  bloodless, 
his  eyes  restless,  near  together,  and  set  deep 
beneath  his  brows,  which  are  straight  and 
black."  The  only  direct  presentation  of  Jesus 
is  in  the  triumphal  entrance  into  the  city  of 
Jerusalem.  The  whole  story  ends  with  the 
crucifixion  and  the  despair  of  the  disciples. 

By  far  the  most  voluminous  and  popular  of 
the  clerical  novelists  was  Edward  Payson  Roe 
(1838-1888).  Matthew  Arnold  once  wrote  sar 
castically  about  him,  saying,  "The  Western 
states  are  at  this  moment  being  nourished 
and  formed,  we  hear,  on  the  novels  of  a  native 
author  called  Roe."  Many  were  certainly  nour 
ished  on  Roe's  novels,  for  they  were  phenome 
nally  successful  from  the  publishers'  standpoint 
of  rapid  sales ;  and  in  spite  of  Mr.  Arnold  they 


110     THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

were  read  almost  as  much  in  England  as  in 
America.  Though  many  American  critics 
could  not  take  Roe's  art  seriously,  he  was 
stoutly  defended  by  George  Ripley. 

Roe  was  a  graduate  of  Williams  College,  an 
army  chaplain  during  the  Civil  War,  and  min 
ister  of  a  Presbyterian  church  in  Highland 
Falls,  New  York,  until  he  changed  his  resi 
dence  to  Cornwall-on-the-Hudson.  His  first 
story  was  occasioned  by  the  great  Chicago  fire 
of  1871,  and  was  called  "Barriers  Burned 
Away."  It  contains  many  excellent  accounts 
of  the  fire,  for  the  author,  being  present  during 
part  of  it,  set  down  what  he  saw.  Other 
stories,  nineteen  in  all,  followed,  the  most 
noted  being  "  What  Can  She  Do  ? "  "  The  Open 
ing  of  a  Chestnut  Burr,"  "  A  Face  Illumined," 
"The  Earth  Trembled,"  "Nature's  Serial 
Story,"  "Near  to  Nature's  Heart,"  and  "His 
Sombre  Rivals."  The  books  were  all  written 
with  a  moral  purpose,  —  to  instil  into  the 
popular  mind  the  ideals  of  right  living.  This 
was  done  by  presenting  daily  experiences  and 
familiar  types  of  character,  dealing  with  prob 
lems  of  moral  significance.  This  preaching 


POETRY  AND    ROMANCE  m 

through  the  novel  was  condemned  by  the 
critics,  as  was  the  commonplace  artificiality 
of  some  of  the  books.  There  is  no  doubt 
that  the  novels  of  Roe  can  be  easily  attacked 
on  the  grounds  of  loose  construction,  mawkish 
situations,  unreality,  and  exaggeration,  but  they 
cannot  be  entirely  dismissed  with  such  cavalier 
treatment.  Roe  was  conscious  of  his  short 
comings,  but  he  wisely  said,  "The  only  thing 
for  a  writer  is  to  be  himself  and  take  the  con 
sequences."  The  books  set  many  people  to 
thinking,  and  by  presenting  real  life  in  the 
form  of  interesting  problems,  disguised  as 
stories,  he  wrought  for  an  excellent  end.  Such 
a  book  as  "  What  Can  She  Do  ? "  undoubtedly 
aided  in  the  movement  for  an  educated  and 
capable  womanhood,  able  to  look  out  for  itself 
in  trials  of  a  severe  nature.  This  was  the  pur 
pose  of  Roe  in  writing  it.  "  This  book  was 
not  written,"  he  says,  uto  amuse,  to  create 
purposeless  excitement,  or  to  secure  a  little 
praise  as  a  bit  of  artistic  work.  It  would 
probably  fail  in  all  these  things.  ...  If  I  in 
my  little  sphere  can  by  this  book  lead  one 
father  to  train  his  children  to  be  more  strong 


112      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

and  self-reliant,  one  mother  to  teach  her  daugh 
ters  a  purer,  more  patient,  more  heroic  woman 
hood,  ...  I  shall  be  well  rewarded."  Certainly 
the  struggles  of  the  self-indulgent  daughters  of 
Mr.  Allen,  after  his  failure  and  death,  to  gain 
a  respectable  living,  must  have  awakened  many 
to  the  dangers  lying  in  the  path  of  young 
women  who  have  not  been  trained  to  the 
practical  duties  of  life.  "A  Face  Illumined" 
had  in  it  a  lesson  for  beauty  with  a  sleeping 
soul ;  and  the  illuminating  of  the  features  by 
the  calling  out  of  a  nobler  spirit  is  told  with 
something  like  art.  "  Near  to  Nature's  Heart" 
is  a  story  of  the  American  Revolution.  In 
"His  Sombre  Rival"  there  is  an  excellent 
account  of  the  battle  of  Bull  Run. 


CHAPTER   IV 

DENOMINATIONAL    LITERATURE 

"How  can  I  live  in  a  country,"  Dr.  Dol- 
linger  once  said,  "where  they  found  a  new 
church  every  day?"  According  to  statistics, 
the  number  of  the  separate  churches  and  sec 
tarian  bodies  is  large ;  but  there  has  been,  how 
ever,  a  decided  tendency  in  America  to  the 
centralization  of  religious  life  into  great  de 
nominational  families,  and  these,  with  different 
histories  and  trend,  have  produced  denomina 
tional  literature  characteristic  of  each.  Most 
of  this  work  is  purely  local,  though  occasion 
ally  a  book  has  been  produced  of  more  general 
interest.  The  Methodists,  the  Baptists,  the 
Presbyterians,  the  Roman  Catholics,  the  Con- 
gregationalists,  and  Unitarians,  Episcopalians, 
Lutherans,  and  Universalists,  have  favorite 
writers  whose  books  are  read  within  the  de 
nomination  and  mould  its  intellectual  life, 
i  113 


TI4     THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN  LETTERS 

The  great  Methodist  movement  in  America 
was  an  appeal  from  "the  theology  of  the 
intellect  to  the  theology  of  the  feelings."  It 
produced  more  conversions  than  books  when 
Asbury,  Coke,  and  Garrettson  gave  their 
message  to  the  aroused  soul,  feeling  an  inward 
change,  and  illuminated  by  the  "  Inner  Light," 
which  the  Quakers  felt  but  did  not  use  so 
effectively.  The  story  of  early  Methodism  is 
the  record  of  journeys.  It  was  said  that  As 
bury,  during  his  long  ministry,  rode  a  dis 
tance  that  would  have  taken  him  twelve  times 
around  the  world,  with  the  object,  so  strik 
ingly  expressed  on  Philip  Embury's  tomb,  "  to 
beautify  the  earth  with  salvation."  "  Lowly 
preaching"  was  the  protest  against  aristocratic 
pride  of  institution.  The  Methodists  laid  little 
stress  on  dogmatic  distinctions,  and  in  the  early 
days  cared  nothing  for  a  knowledge  of  Latin 
and  Greek.  Their  exhortations  were  to  the 
spiritual  natures  of  men,  and  whatever  doc 
trines  lay  behind  their  appeal  were  restate 
ments  of  scriptural  phrases  in  homely  dialect. 

The  contributions  of  Methodism  to  scientific 
theology  have  not  been  numerous,  but  they 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  115 

have  given  to  American  life  many  picturesque 
and  rugged  characters  that  grew  up  from  the 
soil,  full  of  color,  with  the  vigor  of  the  prairies 
and  the  forests,  examples  of  devotion  from  the 
plain  people  of  the  land.  And  there  are  books 
that  reflect  this  primitive  life  in  a  simple 
way.  Peter  Cartwright  (1785-1872),  called  the 
"  Backwoods  Preacher,"  during  a  long  ministry 
in  Kentucky,  Tennessee,  and  forty-five  years 
in  the  Illinois  Conference,  has  given,  in  his 
two  books,  ''Fifty  Years  a  Presiding  Elder" 
and  "Autobiography  of  Peter  Cartwright,"  a 
vivid  account  of  pioneer  life  and  the  success 
of  itinerant  preaching.  He  was  unconventional 
and  brusque,  but  earnest,  it  being  told  that  he 
once  knocked  a  man  down  because  he  was 
inattentive.  A  type  of  the  scholarly  Method 
ist  is  to  be  seen  in  Wilbur  Fiske  (1792-1839), 
who  studied  law  first,  and  then  became  a 
preacher,  being  chosen  later  the  first  President 
of  Wesleyan  University.  He  was  an  admin 
istrator  of  ability,  with  a  wise  appreciation  of 
the  value  of  education.  His  career  as  a  col 
lege  president  was  most  successful,  and  he 
gave  an  impetus  to  that  movement,  which  has 


Il6      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

been  so  fruitful  among  the  Methodists,  of 
founding  educational  institutions.  His  books 
indicate  his  attainments  and  scholarship  :  "The 
Calvinistic  Controversy,"  "  Sermons  and  Lec 
tures  on  Universalism,"  and,  in  a  less  severe 
vein,  "Travels  in  Europe."  Abel  Stevens 
(1815-1897)  was  more  a  literary  man,  writing 
the  voluminous  "  History  of  Methodism," 
"Tales  from  the  Parsonage,"  and  "Madame 
de  Stae'l."  It  is  interesting  to  note  how  the 
desire  for  education  among  the  Methodists 
expressed  itself  in  the  starting  of  colleges 
which  have  become  important  factors  in  Amer 
ican  life.  They  are  responsible  for  Wes- 
leyan  University,  Drew  Theological  Seminary, 
Dickinson  College,  Syracuse  University,  Bos 
ton  University,  and  many  others  scattered 
throughout  the  country.  The  professors  of 
these  institutions,  through  the  enormous  dis 
seminating  power  of  the  "  Book  Concern  "  and 
the  Chautauqua  movement,  have  written  ex 
tensively  and  aided  in  no  small  degree  the 
effort  to  bring  wholesome  knowledge  within 
reach  of  the  people.  Indeed,  Methodism  in 
these  latter  days  has  undertaken  on  a  vast 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  117 

scale    the   task   of    developing  popular   educa 
tion. 

The  Baptist,  like  the  Methodist,  began  with 
a  contempt  for  learning  and  the  doctrines  of 
historical  Christianity.  It  was  a  revolt  from 
tradition  and  church  authority  to  "the  Bible, 
the  Bible  only."  But  the  needs  of  the  time 
forced  the  denomination  to  establish  institu 
tions  of  learning.  Colgate  University,  the 
University  of  Rochester,  Vassar  College,  and 
the  Newton  Theological  Institution  and  others, 
show  the  estimation  in  which  learning  came 
to  be  regarded.  Brown  University  was  es 
tablished  earlier.  Of  the  Baptists,  says  Pro 
fessor  J.  Lewis  Dimon,  "Among  their  divines 
are  men  whose  names  are  ornaments  of  Ameri 
can  scholarship,  but  it  is  a  noticeable  fact  that 
their  valuable  contributions  to  religious  litera 
ture  have  all  been  in  the  line  of  Biblical  exe 
gesis  ;  to  speculative  theology  they  have  made 
no  important  addition."  The  name  of  Francis 
Wayland,  the  great  President  of  Brown  Uni 
versity,  stands  out  above  any  other  in  the 
denomination.  He  was  a  theologian,  philoso 
pher,  and  statesman.  Richard  Fuller  (1804- 


Il8     THE  CLERGY    IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

1876)  was  also  a  most  eloquent  preacher,  being 
at  one  time  coeditor   of  the  Baltimore  Herald 
and   author   of   a   curious   book,     "Letters   on 
the     Roman     Chancery."      Adoniram     Judson 
(1788-1850),  the  ardent    missionary   to    India, 
was  an   inspiration  to  his   church.     His  labors 
in  Burmah  were  crowned  with    signal    success 
when    he    finished    his    revision    of    the    Old 
and    New    Testaments    in    the    Burmese    lan 
guage.      John    Mason    Peck    (1789-1857)    was 
called    the    father    of    the    American    Baptist 
Home    Missionary   Society    and   projected   the 
American  Baptist  Historical  Society.    His  book, 
"The  Emigrant's  Guide,"  induced  a  large  num 
ber  of  persons  to  make  their  homes  in  the  West ; 
and  his  literary  tastes  were  shown  in  his  "  Life 
of  Father  Clark  "  and  "  Life  of  Daniel  Boone," 
in  Spark's  "American  Biography."     The  Bap 
tist  writers  and  preachers  have  been  noted  for 
their    simple    eloquence    and    the    democratic 
methods  of  their  teaching  and  activity. 

In  contrast  to  the  Baptists  and  Methodists, 
the  Presbyterians  have  always  upheld  the 
necessity  of  a  learned  ministry ;  and  they  have 
unflinchingly  stood  by  the  Westminster  Con- 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  ng 

fession.  They  have  believed  in  a  strong  cen 
tralized  church  government,  and  have  developed 
a  systematic  and  rigorous  theology.  They  have 
always  had  preachers  of  national  fame,  from  the 
days  of  Davies,  Witherspoon,  Tennent,  John 
Breckenridge,  Dickinson,  and  Miller,  to  those  of 
the  Alexanders,  Hodges,  and  James  McCosh. 
Besides  Dr.  Charles  Hodge,  they  have  had  as 
systematic  theologians,  Henry  Boynton  Smith 
and  William  G.  T.  Shedd;  as  church  histo 
rians,  that  indefatigable  writer,  Philip  Schaff, 
and  William  Buel  Sprague,  whose  "Annals  of 
the  American  Pulpit "  is  a  storehouse  of  origi 
nal  information  about  the  American  clergy ;  as 
writers  on  various  religious  subjects,  Edward 
Robinson,  the  author  of  "  Biblical  Researches," 
William  M.  Thomson,  who  wrote  "The  Land 
and  the  Book,"  David  Nelson,  who  published 
the  "Cause  and  Cure  of  Infidelity,"  Robert 
Baird,  who  wrote  "Religion  in  America,"  and 
Albert  Barnes,  whose  book  on  "The  Atone 
ment"  created  much  discussion.  David  Swing, 
who  was  a  Presbyterian  until  after  his  trial  for 
heresy,  was  a  man  of  decided  literary  ability, 
and  wrote  constantly  for  the  Chicago  papers  ; 


120     THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

his  books  also  have  had  a  wide  circulation, 
the  best  known  being  "  Truths  for  To-day." 
One  of  the  greatest  of  the  early  Presbyterians 
was  John  Witherspoon  (1722-1794),  a  signer 
of  the  Declaration  of  Independence  and  Presi 
dent  of  Princeton  College.  He  was  an  ardent 
patriot,  writing  in  1774  the  "Considerations 
on  the  Nature  and  Extent  of  the  Legisla 
tive  Authority  of  the  British  Parliament." 
A  Scotchman,  his  efforts  for  American  inde 
pendence  in  the  Provincial  Congress  and  else 
where  had  great  weight  with  the  Scotch-Irish 
population.  As  a  metaphysician,  he  first  in 
troduced  into  America  the  philosophy  of 
Thomas  Reid.  An  imposing  statue  of  him 
was  erected,  in  1876,  in  Fremont  Park,  Phila 
delphia.  Henry  Boynton  Smith  (1815-1877) 
attained  his  greatest  influence  during  his  pro 
fessorship  in  the  Union  Theological  Seminary 
of  New  York  City.  He  was  a  profound  scholar 
and  theologian,  and  impressed  the  students 
with  his  vast  knowledge  and  his  philosophical 
acumen.  He  wrote  exhaustively  for  the  reli 
gious  periodicals  of  his  denomination ;  and 
though  he  produced  only  one  important  book, 


DENOMINATIONAL  LITERATURE  121 

the  "  History  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  in 
Chronological  Tables,"  his  occasional  addresses 
and  pamphlets  were  widely  known,  and  received 
commendation  from  such  men  as  Sir  William 
Hamilton  and  George  Bancroft.  Of  his  dis 
course  on  "  Church  History,"  Bancroft  wrote 
to  him,  "  I  know  no  one  in  the  country  but 
yourself  who  could  have  written  it."  His 
"Faith  and  Philosophy,"  "Apologetics,"  and 
"  Introduction  to  Christian  Theology  "  are  his 
most  important  remains.  William  Greenough 
Thayer  Shedd  (1830-1894)  was  also  a  professor 
in  the  Union  Seminary,  and  a  constant  writer 
of  theological  books.  His  reputation  was  as 
great  in  Scotland  as  in  America.  In  addition  to 
his  translations  from  the  German,  he  wrote  a 
"History  of  Christian  Doctrine,"  "Theological 
Essays,"  "Literary  Essays,"  and  "The  Doc 
trine  of  Endless  Punishment."  Philip  Schaff 
(1819-1893),  born  in  Switzerland,  had  an  in 
teresting  career  in  Germany  as  a  lecturer  on 
church  history  before  he  came  to  America. 
First  at  Mercersburg,  Pennsylvania,  then  at 
the  Union  Seminary,  New  York,  he  labored 
unceasingly  in  many  departments  of  Christian 


122      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

thought.  He  was  a  scholar,  in  the  German 
sense  of  being  a  student,  in  the  sources  of 
history,  combining  a  profound  knowledge  of  facts 
with  a  power  of  generalization  which  made  his 
work  accurate  and  brilliant.  His  most  noted 
work  was  the  "  History  of  the  Apostolic 
Church,"  but  a  long  list  could  be  made  of 
his  other  writings,  which  would  include  "The 
Creeds  of  Christendom,"  "The  Religious  En 
cyclopaedia,"  based  on  Herzog,  and  "  A  Se 
lect  Library  of  the  Nicene  and  Post-Nicene 
Fathers."  His  numerous  translations  and  edi 
torial  work,  together  with  his  literary  essays, 
show  an  immense  amount  of  labor  in  the 
interests  of  scholarship  and  exact  thought. 

The  Roman  Catholic  Church,  by  reason  of 
its  great  growth  through  immigration,  has  had 
to  devote  the  best  administrative  ability  of  its 
members  to  dealing  with  the  problems  of  its 
internal  development.  In  the  early  part  of  the 
century  it  kept  aloof  from  American  affairs,  but 
its  interest  in  the  education  of  its  adherents 
soon  brought  it  into  collision  with  the  public 
school  system.  After  unsuccessful  attempts 
to  secure  money  from  the  State,  there  were 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  123 

established  numerous  parochial  schools.  Semi 
naries  for  the  training  of  priests  were  founded ; 
and  the  teaching  orders,  notably  the  Jesuits, 
have  exercised  an  important  influence  on  the 
intellectual  life  of  the  church.  In  the  main, 
the  men  who  have  written  books  have  had  in 
mind  the  peculiar  needs  of  Catholicism  in 
America.  St.  Mary's  Seminary,  Baltimore,  the 
college  in  Georgetown,  and  many  other  institu 
tions  of  learning  have  sent  forth  men  who 
have  been  prominent  in  church  and  secular 
walks  of  life.  The  first  Roman  Catholic  bishop 
in  America,  John  Carrol  (1735-1815),  was  a 
friend  of  Washington  and  delivered  a  cele 
brated  eulogy  at  the  time  of  his  death.  As  a 
theological  writer  none  has  surpassed  Francis 
Patrick  Kenrick  (1797-1863),  who  wrote  the 
"  Theologica  Dogmatica  "  and  the  "  Theologica 
Moralis,"  used  as  text-books  in  the  seminaries. 
They  are  both  written  in  Latin,  and  aim  at 
being  a  comprehensive  treatment  of  doctrines 
and  ethics.  His  revision  of  the  translations  of 
the  Bible  rank  very  high  in  his  church.  John 
Hughes  (1797-1864),  the  first  archbishop  of 
New  York,  was  a  man  of  great  constructive 


124      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN  LETTERS 

ability,  strengthening  his  diocese  by  the  build 
ing  of  St.  Patrick's  Cathedral,  and  meeting 
the  attacks  upon  his  church  by  letters,  pam 
phlets,  and  joint  debates.  His  encounters  with 
John  Breckenridge  and  Nicholas  Murray  were 
famous.  His  collected  writings  give  a  fair 
account  of  the  history  of  the  Catholic  Church 
in  America  up  to  the  time  of  his  death.  One 
of  his  most  noted  orations  was  delivered  before 
Congress  in  1847  on  "Christianity,  the  Only 
Source  of  Moral,  Social,  and  Political  Power." 
His  semi-official  journey  with  Thurlow  Weed, 
in  1 86 1,  with  the  object  of  securing  the  neu 
trality  of  the  European  nations,  was  successful, 
and  received  the  commendation  of  Secretary 
Seward.  Martin  John  Spalding  (1810-1872), 
Archbishop  of  Baltimore,  made  that  city  a 
centre  of  influence  in  the  church.  He  built 
the  cathedral  in  Louisville,  and  established  the 
Trappist  monks  in  Kentucky.  His  debate  with 
George  D.  Prentice  on  the  Know-nothing  move 
ment  became  famous.  His  principal  books 
were  the  "  History  of  the  Protestant  Refor 
mation,"  "  Sketches  of  Early  Catholic  Missions 
in  Kentucky,"  and  "  Miscellanea."  Orestes 


DENOMINATIONAL  LITERATURE  125 

Augustus  Brownson  (1803-1876),  though  at  dif 
ferent  times  a  Baptist,  Presbyterian,  and  Uni 
tarian,  preacher  and  socialist,  found  his  final 
home  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  becom 
ing  a  strong  ultramontane  and  apologist  for 
the  church.  His  unconventional  book,  "  New 
Views  of  Christianity  and  the  Church,"  marks 
his  period  of  socialist  interests,  and  Brownson 's 
Quarterly  Review  was  a  literary  and  religious 
magazine  of  intellectual  force. 

The  line  of  great  Congregational  ministers, 
from  the  time  of  the  Mathers  and  Edwards,  was 
continued  in  the  national  period  of  American 
literature  in  the  persons  of  Samuel  Hopkins, 
Ezra  Stiles,  Timothy  Dwight,  Abiel  Holmes, 
Horace  Bushnell,  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  Noah 
Porter,  and  Mark  Hopkins.  These  men  retained 
the  same  interest  in  theology  and  speculative 
philosophy.  They  interpreted  the  older  dog 
matism  in  the  light  of  later  knowledge,  but  a 
continuity  of  theological  thinking  is  visible  in 
their  writings.  The  traditions  of  the  past  were 
sacred  to  them.  Though  making  their  own 
new  traditions,  there  was  always  something 
reminiscent  in  them.  The  Congregationalist 


126      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

has  been  as  dogmatic  as  the  Presbyterian. 
Having  greater  freedom,  they  have  had  more 
variations  in  their  systems.  The  liberty  of  the 
separate  congregation  has  been  apparent  in  the 
increasing  use  of  private  judgment.  While 
Nathanael  Emmons  (1745-1840)  was  a  fol 
lower  of  Samuel  Hopkins,  his  system  of 
thought  was  more  an  evolution  from,  than  a 
restatement  of,  Hopkinsianism.  He  taught  that 
the  least  transgression  deserves  eternal  punish 
ment,  but  he  also  held  that  men  act  freely  under 
the  divine  government.  He  was  a  noted  theolo 
gian  and  preacher,  his  chief  books  being  "A 
Dissertation  on  the  Scriptural  Qualifications  for 
Admission  to  the  Christian  Sacraments  "  and 
an  "  Essay  on  Miracles."  The  theological  stu 
dents  who  were  taught  by  him  at  his  home 
in  Franklin,  Massachusetts,  generally  carried 
away  his  distinctive  views.  Lyman  Beecher 
(!7 j 5-1863)  was  an  original  and  rugged  char 
acter  whose  uncompromising  morality  and  se 
vere  theology  never  forsook  him,  either  when 
he  was  a  professor  in  Lane  Theological  Semi 
nary,  or  as  a  preacher  in  Boston,  where  he 
stoutly  combated  the  Unitarian  heresy.  The 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  127 

New  England  conscience  and  will  power  were 
embodied  in  this  ardent  revivalist  and  theolo 
gian.  His  "Views  of  Theology"  and  "The 
Bible  a  Code  of  Laws  "  were  as  characteristic  of 
his  thinking  as  the  "  Six  Sermons  on  Intemper 
ance  "  were  of  his  daily  habit.  "  The  Autobiog 
raphy  and  Correspondence"  shows  his  human 
side  in  the  delightful  description  of  his  home 
life  with  its  sternness  and  devotion,  and  pre 
pares  one  to  understand  how,  from  his  fireside 
of  companionship  and  paternal  affection,  there 
came  forth  into  the  world  two  such  persons 
as  Harriet  Beecher  Stowe  and  Henry  Ward 
Beecher.  Noah  Porter  (1811-1892),  the  presi 
dent  of  Yale  College,  was  more  of  a  metaphy 
sician  than  a  theologian,  realizing  that  truth 
was  broader  than  any  system ;  and  with  more 
modern  culture  and  literary  interest  than  the 
older  men  of  his  denomination,  he  struck  out 
into  new  fields  and  harvested  his  thought  in 
such  books  as  "The  Human  Intellect,"  "Science 
and  Sentiment,"  "  Elements  of  Intellectual  Sci 
ence,"  and  "  Kant's  Ethics."  His  generous 
views  made  him  defend  Horace  Bushnell  when 
he  was  attacked  for  heresy;  and  his  earnest 


128      THE   CLERGY    IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

advocacy  of  Bushnell's  liberty  of  thought  proved 
that  he  was  both  wise  and  tolerant. 

Growing  out  of  Congregationalism  and  pro 
testing  against  its  orthodoxy  and  rigidity,  Uni- 
tarianism  arose  to  give  a  new  impetus  to 
American  letters.  Channing  began  it,  in  its 
most  effective  form  at  least,  by  his  Baltimore 
sermon,  in  1819,  at  the  ordination  of  Jared 
Sparks ;  and  the  controversy  about  the  free 
dom  of  inquiry  and  the  dignity  of  human 
nature,  with  perfect  liberty  of  discussion  about 
accepted  doctrines,  divided  the  New  England 
churches.  Unitarianism  was  an  appeal  to 
reason  and  man's  best  sentiments,  and  it  in 
spired  new  thought,  and  brought  men  into 
closer  touch  with  nature,  literature,  and  life. 
With  no  creed  but  the  self-expression  of  the 
individual,  with  no  forms  but  those  suited  to 
the  present  needs,  with  no  prejudices  but  the 
discoveries  of  the  human  reason  and  intuitions, 
Unitarianism  stimulated  the  search  for  truth 
in  every  department  of  human  history  and 
experience.  It  was  the  father  of  Transcen 
dentalism,  coming  to  its  full  flower  in  Emer 
son,  Lowell,  and  Holmes.  The  unfettered 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE 


129 


mind  seemed  to  revel  in  beauty,  poetry,  and 
philosophy.  German  theology  and  English 
poetry  united  to  develop  its  best  representa 
tives.  Boston  and  Harvard  University  led 
in  the  movement  which  began  in  Arminianism 
and  ended  in  a  radicalism  which  refused  to 
accept  any  external  authority.  Channing  was 
conservative,  while  Theodore  Parker  went  to 
the  extremes  of  denial  and  reconstruction. 
Orville  Dewey  was  a  more  systematic  defender 
and  expositor  of  Unitarianism  than  either  of 
them,  his  "  Discourses  and  Discussions  in  Ex 
planation  and  Defence  of  Unitarianism  "  being 
widely  read.  Thomas  Starr  King  (1824-1863) 
carried  the  new  faith  from  Boston  to  San 
Francisco,  where  he  was  also  active  during 
the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War  in  influencing 
California  to  remain  in  the  Union.  He  was 
an  eloquent  speaker  and  writer  of  ability,  with 
a  sympathetic  love  of  nature,  which  expressed 
itself  in  "The  White  Hills,  Their  Legends, 
Landscapes,  and  Poetry."  His  other  books 
were  "Patriotism  and  Other  Papers,"  "Chris 
tianity  and  Humanity,"  and  "  Substance  and 
Show."  He  was  celebrated  as  a  lecturer  and 


THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

preacher.  William  Henry  Charming  (1810- 
1884),  besides  writing  the  "  Memoirs  of  Will 
iam  Ellery  Channing  "  and  "  Memoirs  of  Mar 
garet  Fuller  Ossoli,"  was  an  earnest  reformer, 
who  endeavored  to  change  the  social  condi 
tions  of  his  time.  In  Liverpool  and  Washing 
ton  he  was  a  pioneer  in  sociological  studies, 
embodying  his  views  in  "  The  Christian  Church 
and  Social  Reform."  Frederic  Henry  Hedge 
(1805-1890)  was  one  of  the  most  scholarly  of 
the  Unitarians,  an  editor  of  the  Christian  Ex 
aminer,  and  rendered  effective  service  to  his 
church  by  means  of  his  careful  thought  and 
philosophical  studies.  His  "  Reason  in  Reli 
gion,"  the  "Ways  of  the  Spirit,"  and  "Atheism 
in  Philosophy  "  were  recognized  as  able  expo 
sitions  of  the  Unitarian  position.  James  Free 
man  Clarke  (1810-1888)  was  a  prolific  writer 
and  a  revered  pastor  in  Boston,  where,  during 
a  long  ministry,  he  gained  honor  for  himself 
and  his  church  by  the  gentleness  of  his  nature 
and  his  leadership  in  all  philanthropic  move 
ments.  His  extensive  learning  was  shown 
in  "The  Ten  Great  Religions,"  and  his  prac 
tical  spirit  in  "Common  Sense  in  Religion." 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  131 

His    sermons    and    poems    breathe    a    devout 
spirit. 

The  Church  of  England  parishes  in  America 
after  the  Revolution  organized  themselves  into 
the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church.  The  Episco 
pal  system  was  perfected  by  the  consecration 
of  bishops  in  Scotland  and  England;  and  a 
church,  akin  to  the  Mother  Church  and  in  com 
munion  with  her,  was  set  up  in  America.  It 
was  natural  that  at  first  the  traditions  and  liter 
ary  characteristics  of  the  English  Church  should 
have  been  most  congenial  to  the  Episcopalians, 
but  after  a  time  the  new  conditions  required 
more  varied  expression,  and  other  tendencies 
made  themselves  felt.  The  comprehensiveness 
of  the  church  and  its  freedom  from  doctrinal 
definition  produced  many  differences  of  opin 
ion,  and  these  found  their  way  into  the  church's 
literature.  A  regard  for  the  institution  and 
different  interpretations  of  it,  and  the  growth 
of  types  of  churchmanship,  gave  rise  to  con 
troversies.  These  appeared  not  only  in  con 
ventions  and  assemblies,  but  in  books,  which 
reflected  a  devotion  to  the  polity,  liturgy,  the 
sacraments,  and  festivals,  and  explained  and 


132       THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

defended  them.  Writings  of  an  ecclesiastical 
more  than  of  a  theological  nature  have  ema 
nated  from  the  Episcopal  Church,  though 
there  have  been  numerous  books  that  properly 
should  be  called  religious,  and  others  distinctly 
literary  in  their  tone.  Bishop  White,  Dr. 
Croswell,  Robert  Lowell,  and  Phillips  Brooks 
are  representatives  of  these  qualities  of  the 
Episcopal  Church :  White  the  organizer,  Phil 
lips  Brooks  the  great  preacher,  the  other  two 
being  poets.  William  Smith  (1727-1803)  was 
a  publicist  and  an  ecclesiastic.  With  the  coop 
eration  of  Bishop  White  he  made  alterations 
in  the  English  Prayer-book  for  the  church  in 
America,  and  prepared  what  is  known  as  the 
"  Proposed  Book,"  an  amended  Prayer-book 
for  the  use  of  the  Episcopal  Church.  He  was 
provost  of  the  University  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  devoted  to  scientific  research.  "The  Pres 
ent  Situation  of  American  Affairs "  and  his 
"  Eulogy  on  Franklin "  show  his  patriotism 
during  the  struggle  for  independence  and  his 
statesmanlike  appreciation  of  the  needs  of  the 
republic.  John  Henry  Hobart  (1775-1830) 
was  a  man  of  commanding  personality  and 


DENOMINATIONAL  LITERATURE  133 

an  advocate  of  Episcopal  ordination,  his 
"  Apology  for  Apostolic  Orders  "  and  "  Com 
panion  to  the  Altar "  marking  him  as  an 
ecclesiastic  of  strong  convictions.  He  was 
responsible  for  the  founding  of  Hobart  Col 
lege,  which  bears  his  name.  Bishop  William 
Meade  (1789-1862)  of  Virginia  was  a  man 
of  a  different  kind,  loyal  to  his  church,  but 
not  so  exclusive  and  narrow  as  Hobart.  He 
was  a  friend  of  Washington  and  John  Ran 
dolph.  He  was  a  great  believer  in  personal 
religion,  and  emphasized  the  spiritual  rather 
than  the  official  side  of  a  minister's  life  in  his 
"  Lectures  on  the  Pastoral  Office."  Virginia 
will  always  be  indebted  to  him  for  his  "  Old 
Churches  and  Old  Families  of  Virginia." 
One  of  the  most  vigorous  and  intellectual 
bishops  of  the  Episcopal  Church  was  Alonzo 
Potter  (1800-1865),  Bishop  of  Pennsylvania. 
He  was  at  one  time  Professor  of  Mathematics 
and  Natural  Philosophy  in  Union  College, 
and  his  interest  in  science  and  philosophy 
always  continued.  His  "  Religious  Philoso 
phy,"  a  course  of  Lowell  Lectures,  was  a 
serious  and  scholarly  attempt  to  systematize 


134      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

modern   knowledge  and   interpret  its  religious 
bearing.      He    was    a    Union    man,    and    up 
held    by    his    voice    and    pen    the    principles 
involved    in    the    preservation   of    the   nation. 
The  University    of    Pennsylvania,    the   city   of 
Philadelphia,    and    the    whole    state    felt    the 
influence   of    this    strong    and   energetic   man. 
Young   men's    lyceums    and   workingm'en's   in 
stitutes  owe   much   to   Bishop   Potter's  energy 
and   wise    suggestion.      John    Henry    Hopkins 
(1792-1868),    Bishop    of    Vermont,    took    the 
side    of    slavery,    much    to    the    consternation 
of  his   Northern  brethren,  his  "Vindication  of 
Slavery"    being    a   much-abused   book   in    the 
North.     But  he  was  a  man  of  strong  opinions, 
and  not  to  be  influenced  by  a  love  of  popular 
favor.       He   held   his    high-churchmanship    up 
in  the  face  of  New   England  Puritanism,  and 
never    quailed    at    the    commotion    he   caused. 
His  "History  of  the  Confessionals"  and  "Refu 
tation  of  Milner's  End  of  Controversy,"  in  the 
controversy   with    Archbishop    Kenrick,   estab 
lished     his    position     as     an     uncompromising 
adherent    to    the    Anglican    position    he    had 
taken.       Francis     Lister    Hawks    (1798-1866) 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  135 

was  noted  for  his  eloquence,  but  his  historical 
investigations  were  of  more  permanent  value. 
His  interest  in  the  past  doings  of  his  church 
secured  for  him  the  position  of  historiographer 
of  the  Episcopal  Church,  and  he  prepared 
important  volumes  of  "  Contributions  to  the 
Ecclesiastical  History  of  the  United  States." 
George  Burgess  (1809-1866),  Bishop  of  Maine, 
was  a  man  of  parts,  as  a  learned  and  clever 
man  used  to  be  described.  He  had  decided 
literary  leanings ;  and  with  the  missionary 
work  in  his  feeble  diocese  he  combined  the 
pursuit  of  letters  and  a  taste  for  poetry,  which 
enabled  him  to  translate  the  Psalms  into  Eng 
lish  verse,  and  to  write  "  Pages  of  the  Eccle 
siastical  History  of  New  England."  William 
Augustus  Muhlenberg  (1796-1877)  was  an 
altogether  lovable  character.  His  charity  was 
unbounded.  St.  Luke's  Hospital,  New  York, 
is  his  monument;  and  the  Church  Village  at 
St.  Johnland  is  an  evidence  of  his  belief  in 
the  practical  use  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount. 
Music  and  Christian  harmony  were  the  two 
things  for  which  he  worked  most  assiduously. 
His  "  Plea  for  Christian  Hymns  "  and  his  own 


136      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

religious  poetry,  illustrated  by  his  hymns,  " '  I 
would  not  Live  Alway '  and  other  Verses," 
reveal  the  tenderness  and  depth  of  his  feeling. 
Arthur  Cleveland  Coxe  (1818-1896),  Bishop 
of  Western  New  York,  was  devoted  to  scholar 
ship  and  to  poetry.  His  "  Christian  Ballads  " 
and  "  Athanasion  and  other  Poems "  indicate 
the  purity  and  wholesomeness  of  his  mind. 
He  was  under  the  spell  of  the  delicate  spirit 
ual  influences  of  the  English  Church,  and  its 
representative  in  America.  But  there  was  a 
vein  of  militarism  in  his  make-up,  and  he  could 
defend  what  he  held  sacred  against  the  mighti 
est  opponents.  "  An  Open  Letter  to  Pius  IX  " 
and  other  controversial  writings  sprang  from 
his  deepest  convictions.  As  editor  of  the 
"  Ante-Nicene  Library  "  he  made  an  important 
contribution  to  religious  history.  Samuel  Smith 
Harris  (1841-1888),  Bishop  of  Michigan,  was 
a  broad-minded  and  zealous  sympathizer  with 
the  liberal  thought  of  the  Episcopal  Church. 
He  was  a  skilful  administrator.  In  his  book, 
"The  Relation  of  Christianity  to  Civil  Society," 
he  outlined  a  noble  conception  of  the  State 
and  the  position  that  Christian  law  and  mo- 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  137 

rality  should  hold  toward  it.  William  Stevens 
Perry  (1832-1898)  was  a  historical  writer  of 
unusual  gifts  for  research  into  original  sources. 
His  "  History  of  the  American  Episcopal 
Church  "  was  the  first  attempt  to  give  in  com 
pleteness  the  history  of  his  church.  His  work 
in  American  history,  in  the  discovering  of  co 
lonial  and  Revolutionary  facts,  was  of  value, 
though  his  other  religious  books  are  not  of 
so  much  importance. 

American  religious  life  has  been  enriched  by 
the  work  of  the  systematic  theologians  and  the 
moral  philosophers.  Certain  of  them  have  defi 
nitely  started  out  with  the  intention  of  develop 
ing  a  finished  system.  Others  in  less  formal 
ways  have  made  contributions  to  theology  and 
ethics.  Among  these  strong  intellectual  men 
none  stand  higher  than  Samuel  Hopkins,  Archi 
bald  Alexander,  Hosea  Ballou,  Francis  Way- 
land,  Charles  Hodge,  Elisha  Mulford,  Mark 
Hopkins,  and  James  McCosh. 

Samuel  Hopkins  (1721-1803)  was  instructed 
in  the  household  of  Jonathan  Edwards,  and, 
possessing  many  of  his  manuscripts,  became  a 
great  student  of  the  Edwardsian  scheme.  He 


138      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

was  a  close  reasoner,  but  lacked  the  sustained 
power  sufficient  to  perfect  a  complete  system, 
though  his  modification  of  Edwards's  thought 
into  what  was  known  as  "  Consistent  Calvin 
ism  "  settled  the  trend  of  "  New  England  The 
ology  "  for  half  a  century.  Scattered  through 
his  many  writings  and  embedded  in  them  are 
his  leading  ideas.  The  main  doctrines  are  the 
freedom  of  the  individual  in  choosing  right  and 
wrong,  yet  being  acted  upon,  while  he  acts,  by 
divine  decree,  which  extends  to  his  sin  or  his 
goodness ;  sin  is  overruled  by  God  and  becomes 
an  occasion  of  good ;  no  man  is  under  obliga 
tions  to  perform  an  act  unless  he  has  the  natu 
ral  ability  for  it ;  one  must  sacrifice  all  his 
interest  for  the  sake  of  the  ''being  in  general"  ; 
and  the  atonement  was  not  for  the  elect  only, 
but  for  all  men.  The  sterner  features  of  Ed 
wards  were  softened  somewhat ;  and  the  equity 
of  God  and  the  beauty  of  holiness  were  more 
sympathetically  put  forth.  For  this  temperate- 
ness  the  doctrines  of  Dr.  Hopkins  have  been 
called  Pelagian.  "A  System  of  Doctrines  con 
tained  in  Divine  Revelation,"  "  An  Inquiry  into 
the  Nature  of  True  Holiness,"  and  "The  Di- 


DENOMINATIONAL  LITERATURE  139 

vinity  of  Christ "  were  among  his  most  promi 
nent  theological  books.  He  also  wrote  "The 
Life  and  Character  of  President  Edwards.'' 

The  most  memorable  work  of   Dr.   Hopkins 
was  in  connection  with  slavery.     Privately  and 
publicly  he  kept  up  the  agitation.     When  he 
first  startled  his  congregation  in   Newport  by 
proposing   the    setting   free   of    the   slaves,    as 
Mr.  Whittier  said  :    "  It  well  may  be  doubted 
whether   on   that    Sabbath   day   the   angels    of 
God  in  their  wide  survey  of  the  universe  looked 
upon  a  nobler  spectacle  than  that  of  the  minis 
ter  of  Newport,  rising  up  before  his  slave-hold 
ing  congregation  and  demanding  in  the  name 
of  the  Highest,  the  deliverance  of  the  captive." 
He  afterward  published  his  famous  "  Dialogue 
Concerning  the  Slavery  of  the  Africans"  and  the 
"Address  to  Slave-holders,"  and  gave  the  copy 
right  money  on  his  "System  of  Doctrines"  to  send 
some  freed  negroes  back  to  Africa.     Through 
correspondence  with  John  Erskine  and  Granville 
Sharp  he  started  the  movement  which  resulted  in 
the  establishment  of  the  American  Colonization 
Society.     Eccentric,  but  full  of  kindly  impulses, 
he  was  one  of  the  theological  giants  of  his  day. 


140      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN  LETTERS 

Archibald  Alexander  (1772-1851)  was  an 
other  of  the  Princeton  theologians  who,  by 
founding  the  Princeton  Theological  Seminary, 
gave  a  trend  to  the  whole  intellectual  life  of 
the  Presbyterian  church.  His  history  of  "  Log 
College "  gives  an  interesting  account  of  the 
early  beginnings  of  Princeton  College,  and 
excellent  biographical  sketches  of  the  first 
Alumni.  Dr.  Alexander's  work,  however,  of  a 
more  far-reaching  kind,  was  in  moral  science. 
His  more  professional  theological  writings  were 
the  "Outlines  of  the  Evidences  of  Christi 
anity  "  and  "  Canon  of  the  Old  and  New 
Testaments,"  but  his  ethical  work,  "Moral 
Science,"  became  even  better  known,  and  was 
used  as  a  text-book  in  many  institutions  of 
learning.  The  reasoning  is  close  and  the 
illustrations  are  familiar,  as  it  treats  of  the 
supremacy  of  conscience,  the  moral  emotion, 
the  nature  of  virtue,  leading  to  the  conception 
of  the  Divine  Being.  It  maintains  that  the 
intuitive  perceptions  of  conscience  are  inde 
pendent  of  every  doctrine  of  theology.  A 
moral  basis  is  found  for  action.  The  treatise 
is  positive  and  didactic  rather  than  controver- 


DENOMINATIONAL  LITERATURE  14  j 

sial,  the  language  being  simple  and  clear.  The 
application  of  fundamental  principles  to  details 
of  life  is  done  in  a  way  to  hold  the  attention 
and  to  make  duty  seem  reasonable  and  sacred. 
The  connection  between  ethics  and  theology 
is  of  course  indicated.  In  the  argument 
against  Paley's  contention  that  ideas  of  moral 
obligation  resolve  themselves  into  principles 
of  benefit  and  injury,  the  uniformity  of  moral 
dictates  is  asserted  as  coming  from  a  divine 
source.  Other  of  his  writings  are  "A  Theory 
of  Conduct,"  "  Some  Problems  of  Philosophy," 
and  "Theories  of  the  Will  in  the  History  of 
Philosophy."  He  also  prepared  a  "History  of 
African  Colonization." 

Hosea  Ballou  (1771-1852),  one  of  the  fathers 
of  Universalism,  started  life  with  little  educa 
tional  equipment,  learning  to  read  in  his  boy 
hood  by  the  light  of  burning  pine  knots.  He 
was  very  much  distressed  at  the  current  esti 
mate  of  the  proportion  of  the  elect  and  non- 
elect  as  only  one  in  a  thousand  of  mankind. 
This  caused  him  to  study  the  Bible  for  him 
self  ;  and  later  he  found  himself  in  sympathy 
with  John  Murray  and  Elhanan  Winchester. 


142      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

His  vigorous  and  common-sense  methods  soon 
won  many  followers,  his  preaching  being  pas 
sionate,  but  full  of  homely  wit  and  hopefulness. 
The  principal    books   which   contain   his  most 
serious  thought  are  "  Notes  on  the  Parables," 
-Treatise   on  Atonement,"   and   "Doctrine   of 
Future  Retribution."     In  these  and  his  other 
writings,    which   were   most   numerous,  he  de 
veloped   a   scheme,    rather    than   a   system   of 
doctrine,   that   was    the    intellectual    guide   of 
Universalism.      He  was  influenced  by  Paine's 
"Age  of  Reason"  "to  see  that  it  was  utterly 
impossible    to    maintain    Christianity   as    gen 
erally  believed  by  the  Christian  church."     He 
was  also  an  anti-Trinitarian,  being  a  Unitarian 
in  thought  probably  most  of  his  life.      As  an 
illustration  of  his  plain  speaking  the  statement 
of   his  reason   for   rebellion  against    Calvinism 
may  be  recalled.     "  I  am  born  into  this  world 
of   sorrow   and    trouble,"    he   said;    "the   first 
vibration    of    sense   is   want;    I    endeavor    to 
supply   my  needs,  and   to   maintain   my  exist 
ence,   which    my    Maker    has   bestowed    upon 
me ;  but  as  soon  as  I  come  to  years  of  under 
standing,   I  am  told  of   an  infinite  debt  which 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  143 

stands  against  me,  which  I  owed  thousands  of 
years  before  I  was  born ;  and  that  my  Maker 
is  so  angry  with  me  and  has  been  ever  since 
the  debt  was  due,  that  he  has  prepared  a  fur 
nace  of  endless  flames  to  torment  me  in, 
according  to  the  due  requirements  of  justice." 
Ballou's  theology  may  be  described  in  a  few 
words  as  the  sovereignty  of  good  in  the  Uni 
verse,  the  universality  of  God's  providence, 
the  final  overthrow  of  evil,  Christianity  being 
the  moral  appeal  of  divine  love  to  sinful  man, 
and  the  atonement  an  illustration  of  it.  His 
controversies  brought  forth  these  views  with 
greater  clearness,  as  is  seen  in  his  pamphlets, 
"  The  Divine  Benevolence  "  and  his  discussion 
with  Abner  Kneeland  on  the  "  Authenticity  of 
Divine  Revelation."  Ballou's  playfulness  and 
humor,  which  often  softened  the  rigors  of  con 
troversy,  early  manifested  itself.  "  What  book 
are  you  reading  ? "  asked  his  father  when  Hosea 
was  a  boy.  "A  Universalist  book,  father,"  he 
answered.  "  I  cannot  allow  a  Universalist 
book  in  my  house,"  said  the  father.  Then 
Hosea  carried  the  book  to  the  woodpile  and 
hid  it.  The  father  soon  discovered  the  volume, 


144     THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

and  his  surprise  was  great  when  he  saw  it  was 
the  Bible.  An  opponent  once  asked  in  a  con 
vincing  way,  "  What  would  you  do  with  a  man 
who  died  reeking  in  sin  and  crime  ? "  Ballou 
answered,  "  I  think  it  would  be  a  good  plan  to 
bury  him."  Altogether  Ballou  was  the  most 
noted  theologian  and  picturesque  character  of 
the  Universalist  church. 

Francis  Wayland  (1796-1865),  the  famous 
President  of  Brown  University,  was  a  great  edu 
cator,  preacher,  publicist,  and  philosopher.  He 
reorganized  the  university  and  through  his  per 
sonal  contact  with  the  students  exerted  a  last 
ing  impression  upon  them.  They  felt  that  he 
was  a  rock  of  strength  and  always  had  confi 
dence  in  his  judgment.  As  a  citizen  he  was 
prominent  in  public  affairs,  doing  much  to  es 
tablish  charitable  institutions.  The  first  free 
public  library  was  the  direct  result  of  his 
efforts ;  and  he  was  an  energetic  promoter 
of  universal  education  for  the  people,  his 
work  for  the  school  system  of  Providence 
being  long  remembered.  His  book  on  "Do 
mestic  Slavery "  was  an  important  contribu 
tion  to  the  Northern  side  of  the  discussion, 


DENOMINATIONAL  LITERATURE  145 

and  defined  their  position  for  many  members 
of  the  Baptist  denomination.  Dr.  Wayland's 
principal  literary  work,  outside  of  his  discourses 
and  orations,  was  the  writing  of  text-books  con 
taining  the  substance  of  his  college  lectures  on 
economic  and  moral  subjects.  "The  Elements 
of  the  Intellectual  Philosophy"  was  a  compre 
hensive  study  of  the  mental  powers,  with  chap 
ters  on  memory,  reasoning,  imagination,  and 
taste.  The  discussion  of  the  value  of  evidence 
reads  like  the  pages  of  a  law  book.  "The  Ele 
ments  of  Political  Economy"  stated  in  the 
plainest  terms  the  principles  of  production,  ex 
change,  distribution,  and  consumption.  Though 
it  could  hardly  be  called  a  work  of  great  origi 
nality,  it  systematized  for  popular  use  facts  and 
theories  of  economic  value,  and  called  attention 
to  a  science  which  was  just  beginning  to  be 
generally  taught.  More  on  his  own  ground 
was  "The  Elements  of  Moral  Science."  This 
dealt  with  theoretical  and  practical  ethics  in  a 
plain,  straightforward  way,  starting  with  the 
origin  of  the  notion  of  a  moral  quality  of  action 
and  continuing  in  a  treatment  of  such  practical 
questions  as  justice,  veracity,  the  law  of  mar- 


146      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

riage,  and  the  duties  of  citizens.  He  acknowl 
edges  his  indebtedness  to  Bishop  Butler,  whose 
treatment  of  conscience  he  did  little  more  than 
restate ;  of  his  other  writings,  "  The  Duties  of 
an  American  Citizen"  and  "The  Education 
demanded  by  the  People  of  the  United  States  " 
were  well  known.  Dr.  Wayland  was  one  of 
those  vigorous  men  who  make  vital  every  sub 
ject  they  touch ;  and  his  eminence  in  his 
denomination  brought  into  immediate  notice 
whatever  he  had  to  say. 

Another  of  the  system-builders  was  Charles 
Hodge  (1797-1878),  one  of  the  most  honored 
professors  in  the  Princeton  Theological  Semi 
nary.  His  articles  in  the  Princeton  Review 
helped  to  make  that  review  famous.  They 
were  written  upon  a  variety  of  subjects,  na 
tional  and  religious,  and  always  with  great  care 
and  learning.  The  one  on  the  "State  of  the 
Country,"  published  in  1861,  excited  much 
attention,  being  reprinted  in  pamphlet  form 
and  widely  distributed.  It  was  attacked  in 
the  South  as  "Black  Republican,"  and,  be 
cause  of  its  moderate  tone,  in  the  North  by 
the  radical  party  with  Garrison  and  Wendell 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  147 

Phillips  as  the  representatives.  His  "Consti 
tutional  History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
in  the  United  States,"  "Way  of  Life,"  and 
"Commentaries"  came  from  a  mind  enriched  by 
theological  studies  and  a  spirit  that  was  essen 
tially  devotional.  The  work  of  his  life,  how 
ever,  was  the  voluminous  "  Systematic  The 
ology,"  which  gathered  together  his  mature 
thought,  the  result  of  years  of  study  and 
teaching.  This  work  is  a  comprehensive  re 
view  of  theology  in  four  parts,  embracing 
theology,  anthropology,  soteriology,  and  escha- 
tology.  There  is  little  speculation  or  phi 
losophy  in  it,  and  no  attempt  at  original 
treatment.  He  once  said  that  "Princeton 
had  never  been  charged  with  originating  a 
new  idea."  He  rejoiced  in  this ;  and  would 
have  deemed  it  more  than  an  intellectual  error 
to  have  gone  beyond  the  exegesis  of  the  Bible 
and  let  his  unrestrained  reason  deal  with  creed 
or  doctrine.  The  system  of  Dr.  Hodge  was 
the  setting  forth  anew  of  the  Protestantism  of 
the  Reformation  and  a  Calvinism  which  had 
modified  itself  in  few  important  particulars. 
A  decided  interest  attaches  to  the  polemical 


148      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

portions  of  the  work,  because  of  the  excellent 
review  of  the  newer  religious  conceptions  that 
were  just  arising  through  the  study  of  science. 
Dr.  Hodge  could  never  see  anything  but 
rationalism  and  dangerous  materialism  in  the 
novel  scientific  studies.  There  are  two  things 
which  strike  one  about  this  magnum  opus  that 
are  not  evident  in  commentaries  as  a  rule ;  the 
first  is  the  devotional  spirit  through  the  whole 
of  it,  and  the  other  is  the  fairness  and  clearness 
with  which  the  subjects  are  treated.  The  small 
book  on  "  Darwinism "  exhibits  unmistakably 
the  fear  Dr.  Hodge  felt  that  evolution  would  pro 
mote  atheism.  The  scholarship  of  the  professor 
was  not  greater  than  his  affectionate  nature. 
This  impressed  itself  upon  a  constantly  increas 
ing  number  of  students  who  passed  from  under 
his  influence  into  the  Presbyterian  ministry. 

Elisha  Mulford  (1833-1885),  a  lecturer  in  the 
Episcopal  Theological  School,  Cambridge,  was 
a  writer  of  originality  and  power.  His  studies 
in  Halle  and  Heidelberg  prepared  him  for  a 
life  of  devotion  to  philosophic  and  theological 
thought.  His  knowledge  of  the  German  theo 
logians,  especially  Hegel  and  Rothe,  and  his 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  149 

sympathy  with  Maurice  and  Erskine,  fitted  him 
to  write  two  remarkable  books,  "The  Nation, 
the  Foundation  of  Civil  Order  and  Political 
Life  in  the  United  States"  and  "The  Repub 
lic  of  God."  The  last  named,  called  "An  Insti 
tute  of  Theology,"  was  the  condensed  expression 
of  his  religious  thought  and  experience.  It  is 
full  of  epigrammatic  force  and  has  a  fine  literary 
flavor.  It  deals  with  the  reasons  for  the  being 
of  God,  and  the  relations  of  religion  and  phi 
losophy  to  the  revelation  of  God,  the  Incarnation, 
the  redemption  of  the  world,  and  the  life  of  the 
spirit.  It  presents  a  complete  survey  of  the  no 
blest  conceptions  of  humanity,  history,  and  the 
Christian  religion,  with  all  the  aid  to  be  received 
from  a  frank  acceptance  of  the  scientific  contri 
butions  to  theology.  It  comes  the  nearest  of 
the  books  by  American  writers  to  being  a  sys 
tematic  treatment  of  Christianity  in  the  light  of 
modern  thought.  Profound  reverence,  combined 
with  mystical  and  poetic  insight,  gives  the  book 
a  quality  at  once  dignified  and  monumental. 
The  main  features  of  Dr.  Mulford's  theology 
are  the  indwelling  of  the  Spirit  of  God  in 
humanity  and  Christ's  organic  relations  with 


I5O      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN  LETTERS 

man,  the  Incarnation  being  the  natural  revela 
tion  in  history  of  the  character  of  God.  Sin  is 
bondage  to  the  order  of  nature  and  redemption 
is  the  elevation  of  the  soul  into  the  life  of  the 
spirit.  Death  is  a  law  of  nature  but  not  the 
law  of  the  spirit.  Historical  Christianity  with 
its  scriptures,  sacraments,  and  church  is  the 
power  to  develop  the  spirit's  life.  This  is 
brought  out  very  clearly  in  the  chapter  with 
the  striking  title,  "  Christianity  not  a  Religion 
and  not  a  Philosophy.''  "The  Nation"  is  a 
book  of  political  philosophy  which  has  many  of 
the  same  elements  of  religious  feeling.  The 
conception  of  the  State  as  a  divinely  ordered 
instrumentality  to  bring  about  the  solidarity  of 
men  is  a  daring  essay  into  the  field  of  philo 
sophical  statesmanship.  "  It  is  a  most  impor 
tant  contribution  to  our  political  literature," 
said  Charles  Sumner,  "and  cannot  fail  to  ele 
vate  our  national  life."  Dr.  Mulford's  gentle 
ness  and  nobility  of  purpose  and  character 
drew  from  Whittier  these  beautiful  lines  of 
appreciation  :  — 

"  Unnoted  as  the  setting  of  the  star 

He  passed  ;  and  sect  and  party  scarcely  knew 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  15! 

When  from  their  midst  a  sage  and  seer  withdrew 
To  fitter  audience,  where  the  great  dead  are 
In  God's  republic  of  the  hearts  and  mind, 
Leaving  no  purer,  nobler  soul  behind." 

The  name  of  Mark  Hopkins  (1837-1887) 
is  synonymous  with  the  idea  of  the  inspiration 
of  a  teacher  to  a  pupil.  As  President  of  Will 
iams  College  he  was  a  moulder  of  men,  and 
vindicated  forever  the  value  of  the  small  col 
lege  where  the  professor  knows  his  students. 
It  has  been  said  that  if  Mark  Hopkins  was  on 
one  end  of  a  bench  and  a  student  on  the  other, 
there  would  be  a  university ;  and  it  is  true  that 
the  knowledge,  good  sense,  and  persuasiveness 
of  the  teacher  would  give  to  the  student  the 
best  elements  of  education,  and  such  an  ideal 
of  life  that  he  would  go  forth  to  do  a  man's 
duty  in  the  world.  At  the  installation  of  a  new 
president  of  Williams  College,  President  Gar- 
field,  referring  to  his  own  indebtedness  to  Mark 
Hopkins,  said  :  "  You  are  entering  upon  a  work 
always  great,  always  difficult,  but  now  made 
doubly  so  by  the  example  of  him  who  has  so 
long  and  so  nobly  trodden  the  path  which  you 
now  enter.  We  will  not  ask  you  to  bend  the 


152      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

bow  of  Ulysses.  Let  it  here  remain  unbent  for 
ever,  as  the  sacred  symbol  and  trophy  of  vic 
tories  achieved."  Such  testimony  comes  from 
all  who  ever  came  in  contact  with  the  gracious 
and  affectionate  nature  of  the  noble  President 
of  Williams  College.  But  the  world  also 
learned  to  know  him.  His  "Evidences  of 
Christianity,"  "The  Law  of  Love,"  "Moral 
Science,"  "An  Outline  Study  of  Man,"  and 
"  Strength  and  Beauty "  carried  his  influence 
far  beyond  the  college  town  hid  in  the  Berk 
shire  Hills.  Though  he  knew  the  affairs  of 
men  chiefly  from  books,  and  meditated  on  life 
in  his  own  study,  he  learned  a  truth  of  univer 
sal  application  and  brought  a  word  of  encour 
agement  to  men  engaged  in  more  direct 
contact  with  the  rush  of  practical  duty. 
Though  almost  a  recluse,  he  was  elected 
President  of  the  Board  of  Foreign  Missions, 
because  his  spirit  was  large  enough  to  include 
the  world  in  the  circle  of  his  thought  and 
endeavor.  Of  his  writings  there  is  this  to  be 
said,  that  they  express  the  fulness  of  his  nature 
and  are  clear  and  beautiful  expositions  of  his 
faith.  "  The  Evidences  of  Christianity "  is 


DENOMINATIONAL  LITERATURE  153 

most  sane  in  its  effort  to  show  the  reasonable 
ness  of  essential  Christianity,  and  "  The  Law 
of  Love "  aims  to  show  that  there  is  an 
inherent  force  in  life  which  reveals  a  har 
mony  of  love  and  dominates  disorder  and  sin. 
While  indebted  to  Scotch  philosophy,  he  re 
jects  its  teachings  when  it  becomes  too 
refined,  and  deals  with  the  problems  of  meta 
physics  in  his  own  lucid  and  practical  way. 
Mark  Hopkins  reached  the  world  through  his 
books,  but  more  completely  through  the  men 
who  carried  his  teaching  and  admonitions 
with  them  through  life  and  in  more  than 
one  instance  were  able  to  decide  the  policies 
of  the  nation  in  Congress  and  in  higher 
stations. 

Before  James  McCosh  (1811-1894)  came  to 
America  to  accept  the  presidency  of  Princeton 
College,  he  had  already  had  a  successful  career 
as  a  professor  and  author  of  metaphysical  books, 
in  Scotland  and  in  Queen's  College,  Belfast. 
The  appointment  of  a  Scotch  professor  to  an 
Irish  university  caused  dismay  among  Irishmen, 
and  called  forth  in  Punch  a  ballad  by  Thackeray 
containing  the  lines  :  — 


154     THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

"  As  I  think  of  the  insult  that's  done  to  this  nation, 

Red  tears  of  rivinge  from  me  faytures  I  wash. 
And  uphold  in  this  pome,  to  the  world's  daytistation, 
The  sleeves  that  appointed  Professor  M'Cosh. 

"  O  false  Sir  John  Kane,  is  it  thus  that  you  praych  me? 

I  think  all  your  Queen's  Universitees  bosh  ; 
And  if  you've  no  neetive  Professor  to  taych  me, 
I  scawurn  to  be  learned  by  the  Saxon  M'Cosh." 

When  the  professor  came  to  America  there  was 
no  such  feeling  as  was  reflected  in  "  The  Last 
Irish  Grievance"  by  the  author  of  " Vanity 
Fair."  It  did  not  take  him  long  to  make  his 
way  into  the  hearts  of  the  American  people, 
who  soon  learned  to  love  the  Scotchman  with 
his  wholesome  and  broad-minded  ways.  Prince 
ton  was  proud  of  him,  and  for  more  than 
twenty  years  he  stood  as  an  example  of  intel 
lectual  manhood  to  the  young  men  of  the  col 
lege  and  the  country.  The  logical  caste  of  his 
mind,  and  his  learning  in  Scotch  Theology  and 
philosophy,  kept  him  ever  writing  on  meta 
physical  subjects.  Whenever  one  wants  mental 
exercise  there  is  no  better  way  to  secure  it 
than  by  dipping  into  some  of  the  articles  or 
books  of  Dr.  McCosh.  His  productivity  was 


DENOMINATIONAL   LITERATURE  155 

remarkable.  A  list  of  his  publications  is  like 
a  bookseller's  catalogue.  There  seems  to  be 
no  subject  that  he  failed  to  treat.  From  col 
lege  regattas  at  Saratoga  to  "  Robert  Elsmere," 
from  hazing  to  the  lesson  to  be  derived  from  a 
plant,  from  prayer  to  Herbert  Spencer's  "  Data 
of  Ethics,"  from  Tyndall's  Belfast  address  to 
the  "Confessions  of  an  Agnostic,"  he  seemed  to 
be  equally  informed  and  able  always  to  express 
himself  with  distinction.  His  greatest  works, 
however,  were  "The  Method  of  Divine  Gov 
ernment,  Physical  and  Moral,"  "The  Super 
natural  in  Relation  to  the  Natural,"  "An 
Examination  of  Mr.  John  Stuart  Mill's  Phi 
losophy,"  "The  Scotch  Philosophy,  Biographi 
cal,  Expository,  Critical,  from  Hutcheson  to 
Hamilton,"  and  "The  Intuitions  of  the  Mind, 
Inductively  Investigated."  He  watched  the 
publications  of  the  scientific  writers;  and  what 
ever  seemed  to  bear  upon  theology  in  even  a 
remote  way  was  sure  to  draw  from  him  a  pam 
phlet,  a  review  in  the  Princeton  Review,  or  a 
book.  His  writings  are  a  religious  corrective  to 
the  opinions  of  the  Positivists  and  those  who 
use  physical  nature  as  the  only  basis  for  theo- 


156      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

ries  and  ethics.  And  he  spoke  with  authority, 
because  he  was  known  to  be  a  logician  and 
familiar  with  the  intricate  details  of  scientific 
investigation.  If  there  was  a  weak  point  in 
Darwinian  evolution  he  was  sure  to  find  it,  in 
the  interest  of  truth,  not  merely  because  he 
wanted  to  establish  his  own  position.  Among 
the  thinkers  and  students  of  the  land  Dr.  Mc- 
Cosh  always  had  a  message,  and  it  was  given  a 
respectful  hearing.  As  a  religious  man  he  was 
the  stalwart  defender  of  the  faith  in  its  most 
reasonable  aspects  against  the  serious  or  easy 
going  materialism  of  the  laboratory  or  the 
street.  It  was  on  all  sides  admitted  that  he 
was  a  worthy  champion  to  engage  in  combat 
the  giants  of  science  or  philosophy  who  as 
serted  that  they  could  find  no  evidences  of  a 
spiritual  life  in  nature  or  man's  understanding. 
He  always  upheld  the  integrity  of  religious 
truth  as  it  appealed  to  man's  reason  and  knowl 
edge  of  the  universe.  It  was  a  day  of  impor 
tance  in  American  thought  when  James  McCosh 
left  the  Irish  university  to  take  up  his  abode  in 
an  American  college. 


CHAPTER  V 

TIMOTHY    DWIGHT 

WHEREVER  the  blood  of  Jonathan  Edwards 
runs  in  the  veins  of  a  new  generation  there 
is  sure  to  result  intellects  and  characters  of 
unusual  power.  This  fact  was  illustrated  in  the 
person  of  Timothy  Dwight,  born  May  14,  1752, 
at  Northampton,  whose  mother  was  the  third 
daughter  of  the  old  theological  and  metaphysical 
champion.  Young  Dwight  under  his  mother's 
tuition  learned  the  alphabet  in  one  lesson  and 
read  the  Bible  at  four  years  of  age,  studying 
Latin  at  six,  and  being  instructed  in  geography 
and  history  by  the  mother,  who  acted  on  the 
theory  that  children  often  lose  several  years 
of  profitable  learning  by  being  considered  too 
young  to  be  taught.  The  father  being  a  mer 
chant  of  position  in  Northampton  had  fre 
quently  at  the  family  table  as  visitors  men  of 
distinction  in  learning  ;  these  early  impressed 


158     THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

the  youth  and  filled  him  with  the  ambition 
to  become  a  great  man  by  writing  something 
of  importance,  —  a  desire  which  followed  him 
through  life,  from  his  first  compositions  to 
the  books  upon  which  he  was  engaged  at  the 
time  of  his  death  in  1817.  At  thirteen  he 
went  to  Yale  College  and  wasted  two  years 
in  the  idleness  and  disorder  then  frequent  in 
the  college,  but  soon  applied  himself  with  zeal 
to  his  studies,  rising  before  chapel  to  study, 
prayers  being  at  5.30  in  winter  and  4.30  in 
summer.  This  vigorous  application  weakened 
his  eyes,  which  later  were  more  seriously  in 
jured  by  small-pox,  though  it  enabled  him  at 
fifteen  years  to  begin  writing  poetry  and  making 
a  collection  of  church  music.  After  graduating 
at  the  head  of  his  class,  with  the  intermission  of 
two  years  at  school  teaching,  he  was  appointed 
a  tutor  at  Yale.  From  this  time  may  be  dated 
his  ravenous  search  for  knowledge,  his  mind 
being  stimulated  by  the  study  of  mathematics 
and  the  sciences ;  and  his  love  for  poetry  had 
a  chance  to  grow  by  exercising  itself  in  actual 
accomplishment.  His  devotion  to  study  was 
such  that  he  restricted  his  diet  so  that  he 


TIMOTHY  DWIGHT  159 

might  not  be  compelled  to  take  any  exercise, 
his  dinner  at  one  time  being  consumed  with 
the  mathematical  exactness  of  twelve  mouth- 
fuls.  The  foundations  for  ill  health  were  laid 
in  these  ascetic  practices,  though  he  had  the 
satisfaction  of  securing  a  master's  degree,  de 
livering  as  his  first  public  address,  "A  Disser 
tation  on  the  History,  Eloquence,  and  Poetry 
of  the  Bible,"  —  a  foretaste  of  that  literary  fer 
tility  which  satisfied  his  ambition  and  won 
him  the  reputation  of  publishing  more  exten 
sively  than  almost  any  other  man  on  this  side 
of  the  Atlantic  at  the  time. 

Dwight's  decision  to  enter  the  Congrega 
tional  ministry  was  put  to  a  practical  test  at 
the  outbreak  of  the  Revolutionary  War  when 
he  was  appointed  chaplain  to  General  Parsons' 
brigade,  part  of  General  Putnam's  division. 
His  discourses  to  the  soldiers  became  famous, 
while  the  Muse  inspired  him  to  write  patriotic 
songs  and  odes  which  were  sung  throughout  the 
army.  Military  experience  led  him  into  close 
association  with  distinguished  officers,  especially 
General  Washington.  Patriotic  fervor  and  a 
belief  in  the  triumph  of  American  arms  with 


I6O     THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

the  establishment  of  a  great  nation  found  ex 
pression  in  the  "  Ode  on  the  Glory  of  Colum 
bia."  The  spirit  of  the  lines  is  at  times  ecstatic, 
there  being,  however,  a  clear  vision  of  the  great 
ness  of  the  new  republic  in  the  arts  of  peace  and 
science  as  well  as  victory  on  the  field  of  battle. 

"  Columbia,  Columbia,  to  glory  arise, 
The  Queen  of  the  world  and  the  child  of  the  skies  — 
Thy  genius  commands  thee  ;  with  rapture  behold 
While  ages  on  ages  thy  splendors  unfold. 
Thy  fleets  to  all  regions  thy  powers  shall  display, 
The  nations  admire,  and  the  oceans  obey ; 
Each  shore  to  thy  glory  its  tributes  unfold, 
And  the  east  and  the  south  yield  their  spices  and  gold. 
As  the  day-star  unbounded  their  splendor  shall  flow, 
And  earth's  little  kingdoms  before  thee  shall  bow ; 
While  the  ensigns  of  union  in  triumph  unfurled 
Hush  the  tumult  of  war,  and  give  peace  to  the  world." 

This  optimistic  view  of  the  nation's  future  did 
not  blind  the  eyes  of  the  preacher  to  the  dis 
orders  and  dangers  that  were  to  arise,  and  those 
that  were  caused  by  the  war  itself.  In  the  ser 
mon  preached  at  Northampton,  November  28, 
1781,  occasioned  by  the  capture  of  the  British 
army  under  Cornwallis,  the  victory  was  cele 
brated  in  fitting  terms  as  "one  of  the  most 


TIMOTHY  D WIGHT  l6l 

compleat  and  glorious,"  conducted  with  wis 
dom,  secrecy,  and  courage,  casting  "the  bright 
est  lustre  on  our  great  Commander  and  the 
army  immediately  under  him,"  but  it  also  was 
an  opportunity  to  point  out  the  faults  of  na 
tional  character  and  the  evils  that  the  war  had 
brought  with  it,  showing  a  side  of  the  social 
life  that  is  often  forgotten  in  general  acclaim  at 
the  success  of  the  Revolution.  "This  very 
war"  the  preacher  said,  "a  judgment  which 
ought  to  awaken  repentance  and  humiliation, 
hath  produced  a  dissipation  of  thought,  a  pros 
titution  of  reason,  a  contempt  of  religion,  a  dis 
dain  of  reason,  a  deliberation  in  vice,  and  an 
universal  levity  and  corruption  of  soul  before 
unseen  and  unimagined." 

This  was  the  literary  period  in  which  John 
Trumbull's  "  McFingal "  had  seen  the  light  of 
day  and  Joel  Barlow  was  tuning  his  lyre. 
D  wight  caught  the  infection.  With  Trumbull, 
Lemuel  Hopkins,  Richard  Alsop,  and  Barlow 
he  belongs  to  the  Connecticut  School  of  poets 
who  began  the  series  of  publications  known  as 
"The  Anarchiad."  Alsop  once  wrote  of  him 
thus,  — 


1 62      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

"  Majestic  Dwight  sublime  in  epic  strain, 
Paints  the  fierce  horrors  of  the  crimson  plain." 

This  eulogy  was  called  forth  by  the  pretentious 
epic  poem  "The  Conquest  of  Canaan"  which 
Dwight  published  in  1785,  though  most  of  it 
was  written  earlier ;  this  poem  received  the 
appreciative  remark  of  his  son  that  "it  is  not 
believed  that  the  history  of  English  poetry 
contains  the  account  of  any  equal  effort  made 
at  so  early  an  age." 

"  The  Conquest  of  Canaan  "  with  its  eleven 
books  and  thousands  of  lines  is  a  monumental 
example  of  industry  on  the  part  of  a  young 
man  who  through  its  pages  sought  literary  im 
mortality.  The  poet's  plan  was  ambitious.  He 
reasoned  that  since  Greece  had  its  great  epic 
poem,  "The  Iliad,"  and  Rome  was  the  posses 
sor  of  "The  ^Eneid,"  America  must  not  be 
behind  in  the  race  for  poetic  honors.  There 
must  be  a  great  American  poem.  Seeing  the 
need,  he  straightway  determined  to  supply  it ; 
and  instead  of  frankly  taking  an  American 
subject,  he  hit  upon  a  Biblical  topic  as  most 
likely  to  give  general  satisfaction.  It  is  by 
no  means  unnatural,  however,  that  to  the  Puri- 


TIMOTHY   DWIGHT  163 

tan  mind  the  selection  of  such  a  theme  should 
seem  a  perfectly  normal  matter,  for  Palestine 
was  a  good  deal  better  known  than  many  parts 
of  America.  The  kings  of  Israel  were  better 
known  than  the  worthies  of  Connecticut. 

The  hero  of  the  poem  is  Jabin  the  Canaanite 
who  performs  wonders  not  in  the  record,  places 
and  battles  being  arranged  to  suit  the  exigen 
cies  of  the  composition.  Dreary  as  it  is  as  a 
whole,  there  are  lines  and  passages  of  merit. 
There  is  little  attempt  at  writing  a  scriptural 
poem  ;  the  subject  is  used  like  the  text  of  a 
Puritan  divine  who  finds  a  prototype  in  David, 
Solomon,  or  Jeroboam,  for  characters  in  con 
temporary  life.  The  real  interest  lies  in  read 
ing  between  the  lines,  and  seeing  presented 
in  varied  forms  the  theories,  doctrines,  and 
political  ideas  that  were  rife  in  America  just 
before  and  during  the  Revolution.  When  Joshua 
speaks  of  the  Rights  of  Man,  and  prophesies 
a  great  future  for  his  sons,  we  discern  a  spirit 
working,  which  suggests  a  speech  in  the  Conti 
nental  Congress:  — 

"  Then  o'er  wide  lands  as  blissful  Eden  bright, 
Type  of  the  skies,  and  seats  of  pure  delight, 


1 64      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Our  sons  with  prosperous  course  shall  stretch  their  sway, 

And  claim  an  empire  spread  from  sea  to  sea ; 

In  one  great  whole  the  harmonious  tribes  combine, 

Trace  Justice'  path,  and  choose  their  chiefs  divine  ; 

On  Freedom's  base  erect  the  heavenly  plan, 

Teach  laws  to  reign  and  save  the  Rights  of  Man." 

A  London  edition  of  "  The  Conquest  of 
Canaan"  was  brought  out  in  1788  and  re 
ceived  careful  reading  from  Cowper,  who  re 
viewed  it  in  The  Analytical  Review.  Though 
he  found  in  it  various  anachronisms,  such  as 
eulogies  of  American  Revolutionary  soldiers, 
Warren's  death  on  Bunker  Hill  being  men 
tioned,  he  wrote  fairly  enough  of  the  poem  as 
a  whole.  "  His  numbers,"  writes  Cowper,  "imi 
tate  pretty  closely  those  of  Pope,  and  there 
fore  cannot  fail  to  be  musical ;  but  he  is  chiefly 
to  be  commended  for  the  animation  with  which 
he  writes,  and  which  rather  increases  as  he 
proceeds,  than  suffers  abatement.  His  seventh 
book,  in  which  he  describes  with  great  spirit 
the  horrors  of  a  battle  fought  by  the  light  of 
a  city  in  flames,  affords  one  proof  of  it  ;  and 
his  tenth  book,  which  is  the  last  but  one, 
another.  Here  an  angel  reveals  to  Joshua,  in 
vision,  the  further  destiny  of  his  nation,  and 


TIMOTHY   D WIGHT  165 

the  poet  takes  his  course  through  all  the  great 
events  of  prophecy,  beginning  with  the  settle 
ment  of  the  chosen  race  in  Canaan,  and  clos 
ing  with  the  consummation  of  all  things.  A 
strain  of  fine  enthusiasm  runs  through  the 
whole  book ;  and  we  will  venture  to  affirm  that 
no  man,  who  has  a  soul  impressible  by  a  bright 
display  of  the  grandest  subjects  that  revelation 
furnishes,  will  read  it  without  emotion." 

Timothy  Dwight  lived  in  Northampton, 
Massachusetts,  1777  to  1783,  and  twice  dur 
ing  this  time  was  a  representative  in  the 
legislature  of  Massachusetts,  being  especially 
noted  for  his  speeches  and  aid  in  passing  what 
was  known  as  the  "  Harvard  Grant."  In  1783 
he  took  charge  of  the  parish  in  Greenfield, 
Connecticut,  where  he  resided  as  minister  and 
school-teacher  until  1795,  when  he  was  elected 
to  the  presidency  of  Yale  College.  As  recrea 
tion  from  parish  cares  he  continued  to  write 
and  publish  poetry. 

His  pen  was  as  fluent  in  writing  verses  less 
pretentious  than  an  epic ;  a  good  example  of 
which  is  a  rhymed  letter  to  his  friend  Colonel 
Humphrey  who  was  travelling  abroad.  Dwight 


166      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

urges  him  not  to  forget  his  native  land  and 
adopt  manners  that  would  seem  strange  to 
those  at  home,  there  being  no  reason  why 
"  interfluent  seas  "  should  change  a  man's  char 
acter  and  make  him  like  those  who  "the  plain, 
frank  manners  of  their  race  despise,"  the  poet 
exclaiming,  "  Good  Heaven  preserve  us  from  the 
travell'd  ape  !  "  who  had 

"  A  head,  enqueue,  by  Monsieur  Frizzle  dress'd ; 
Manners,  a  Paris  Taylor's  arts  invest." 

Foreign  learning  with  its  sceptical  tendencies 
was  to  be  avoided,  and  it  was  not  necessary  for 
him  to  know 

«  What  Peter,  Paul,  and  Moses  never  knew ; 
The  light  of  new-born  wisdom  sheds  abroad, 
And  adds  a  lean-to  to  the  word  of  God." 

A  note  explained  to  unfamiliar  readers  the  mean 
ing  of  "lean-to"  as  "an  awkward  addition  to  a 
dwelling-house  very  common  in  New  England." 
A  patriotic  outburst  claims  America  as  the  only 
land  worth  living  in  because  of  its  freedom  and 
love  of  truth  :  — 

"In  fair  Columbia's  realms  how  changed  the  plan 
Where  all  things  bloom,  but,  first  of  all  things,  man!" 


TIMOTHY  D WIGHT  l6/ 

The  worthies  of  America  teach  the  world,  both 
in  philosophy  and  science, 

"Hence  Edwards  cheerd  the  world  with  moral  day, 
And  Franklin  walked,  unhurt,  the  realms  where  light 
nings  play." 

The  new  learning,  with  Hume  and  Vol 
taire  as  exponents,  stirred  Dwight's  soul,  and 
his  Muse  became  strangely  theological.  In 
the  quiet  town  of  Greenfield  he  found  leisure 
enough  to  read  deeply  in  the  thought  of  the  time, 
and  the  more  he  read  the  less  sympathy  did  he 
have  with  those  who  cast  a  slur  on  Calvin 
ism.  Either  a  French  sceptic,  or  an  English  or 
American  theologian,  who  cast  doubts  upon 
received  traditions,  was  his  foe  ;  and  not  content 
with  smiting  them  in  a  ponderous  discourse,  he 
tried  the  keener  weapons  of  irony  and  satire. 
This  form  of  combat  was  essayed  in  1788,  when 
he  published  "The  Triumph  of  Infidelity,"  a 
poem  of  satire  intended  to  strike  between  the 
joints  of  the  armor  those  who  congregated  with 
Satan.  A  critic  of  the  poem  has  said  :  "  Prob 
ably  there  can  now  be  left  for  us  on  this  planet 
few  spectacles  more  provocative  of  the  mel 
ancholy  and  pallid  form  of  mirth  than  that 


1 68      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN  LETTERS 

presented  by  these  laborious  efforts  of  the  Rev 
erend  Doctor  Timothy  Dwight  to  be  facetious 
at  the  expense  of  David  Hume,  or  to  slay  the 
dreadful  Monsieur  de  Voltaire  in  a  duel  of 
irony."  This  may  be  true,  but  the  poem  is 
not  without  amusement,  and  at  times  possesses 
a  rugged  irony  that  is  surprising.  The  poem  is 
dedicated  to  Voltaire.  The  main  theme  is  the 
rejoicing  of  Satan,  "Hell's  terrific  God,"  at  the 
throng  of  his  worshippers  and  his  efforts  to 
gain  new  converts.  In  the  midst  of  his  various 
travels  Satan  is  made  to  say :  — 

"  To  France  I  posted,  on  the  wings  of  air, 
And  fir'd  the  labors  of  the  gay  Voltaire. 
He  light  and  gay,  o'er  learning's  surface  flew, 
And  prov'd  all  things  at  option,  false  or  true." 

To  the  delight  of  Satan,  Hume  sang  :  — 

"  All  things  roll  on,  by  fiVd  eternal  laws ; 
Yet  no  effect  depends  upon  a  cause : 
Hence  every  law  was  made  by  chance  divine, 
Parent  most  fit  of  order  and  design !  " 

The  devotees  of  infidelity  increased  in  such 
numbers  that  the  throng  contained  a  choice  lot 
of  souls :  the  Epicure,  "  his  cheeks  of  port  and 
lips  of  turtle  green"  ;  the  Letcher,  "a  cur,  who 


TIMOTHY   D WIGHT  169 

prowl'd  around  each  quiet  bed" ;  Hypocrisy,  "  his 
sabbath  face  all  furrow'd  with  a  frown  "  ;  and 

"The  infidel  of  modern  breed 
A  swine  unbristled  and  an  untail'd  ape : 
To  couple,  eat,  and  die  —  his  glorious  doom  — 
The  oysters  churchyard  and  the  capon's  tomb." 

This  array  of  spirits  was  enforced  by  one 

"  Who  taught  the  soul  of  man  was  made  of  mud, 
Cold  mud  was  virtue,  warmer  mud  was  sin, 
And  thoughts,  the  angleworms  that  crawl'd  within." 

When  they  were  all  assembled  on  Pandemonia's 
plains,  they  then  learned  a  pleasing  truth  :  — 

"  Here  shall  you,  raptur'd,  find  there  is  no  hell ; 
A  priest  shall  teach  it,  and  the  gospel  tell : 
The  pleasing  truth,  so  long  from  earth  conceal'd, 
To  bless  desponding  guilt  is  now  reveaFd." 

The  triumph  was  almost  complete  until  Satan 
discovered  that  there  was  no  virtuous  man  pres 
ent,  and  then  he  was  enraged  because  his  domin 
ion  was  not  universal.  At  first  in  pride  he 

"  Mark'd  all  the  throng,  beheld  them  all  his  own, 
And  to  his  cause  no  friend  of  virtue  won ; 
SurprisM,  enrag'd,  he  wing'd  his  sooty  flight 
And  hid  beneath  the  pall  of  endless  night." 

Throughout   the   poem   the   interest   is  held 


I/O      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

by  more  than  one  clever  turn  of  phrase  and 
curious  simile.  As  a  whole  it  is  a  more  inter 
esting  relic  of  past  polemics  than  many  a 
famous  discourse.  The  ambition  to  produce  a 
great  poem  was  never  absent  from  D wight's 
mind.  During  the  whole  of  his  residence  in 
Greenfield,  he  was  working  away  with  this  end 
in  view.  The  result  saw  the  light  in  1794, 
when  he  published  the  long  poem  "  Greenfield 
Hill,"  which  soon  became  popular.  He  had  the 
poem  by  him  for  seven  years,  adding  to  and 
correcting  it,  chiefly  at  first  with  the  idea 
of  gaining  relief  from  work,  and  then  desir 
ing,  as  he  stated,  "to  contribute  to  the  inno 
cent  amusement  of  his  countrymen,  and  to 
their  improvement  in  manners,  and  in  ceco- 
nomical,  political,  and  moral  sentiments."  The 
outlook  upon  life  was  from  his  own  home 
as  a  height  from  which  he  saw  the  world 
about  him,  the  village  and  its  inhabitants, 
the  physical  beauty  of  the  landscape,  and 
the  moral  condition  of  the  people,  with  wide 
ranges  of  horizon  beneath  which  the  thrift  and 
energy  and  religion  of  New  England  became 
the  true  elements  of  American  life  with  its 


TIMOTHY  DWIGHT  171 

peace  and  freedom  and  opportunity  for  all. 
Frankly  the  author  states  that  it  was  his  de 
sign  to  imitate,  in  the  different  parts  of  the 
poem,  the  peculiarities  of  many  British  poets, 
and  though  he  gave  up  the  plan  as  to  the 
details  there  is  a  strong  suggestion  of  Sir  John 
Denham's  "Cooper's  Hill,"  and  passages  that 
show  plainly  his  indebtedness  to  Thompson, 
Goldsmith,  and  Gay.  The  poem  is  divided 
into  seven  parts,  each  with  an  appropriate 
name,  descriptive  of  the  contents :  "  The  Pros 
pect,"  "The  Flourishing  Village,"  "The  Burn 
ing  of  Fairfield,"  "The  Destruction  of  the 
Pequods,"  "  The  Clergyman's  Advice  to  the 
Villagers,"  "The  Farmer's  Advice  to  the  Vil 
lagers,"  and  "The  Vision  or  Prospect  of  the 
Future  Happiness  of  America."  In  each  of 
these  sections  there  is  opportunity  for  excel 
lent  description,  homely  advice,  and  instruc 
tion,  besides  the  stating  of  one's  opinions  on 
many  subjects.  The  verses  thus  grew  to  be 
a  reflection  at  close  range  of  the  author's  sur 
roundings  and  well-known  moral  and  politi 
cal  views.  In  "  The  Prospect,"  the  account 
of  the  place  that  an  American  village  occu- 


1/2      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

pied  in   the   nation's  growth   and   strength   is 
admirably  set  forth  :  — 

"  How  bless'd  the  sight  of  such  a  numerous  train 
In  such  small  limits,  tasting  every  good 
Of  competence,  of  independence,  peace 
And  liberty  immingled  ;  every  house 
On  its  own  ground,  and  every  happy  swain 
Beholding  no  superior  but  the  laws, 
And  such  as  virtue,  knowledge,  useful  life, 
And  zeal,  exerted  for  the  public  good, 
Have  raised  above  the  throng,  for  here  in  truth, 
Not  in  pretence,  man  is  esteem'd  as  man. 
Not  here  how  rich,  of  what  peculiar  blood, 
Or  office  high,  but  of  what  genuine  worth, 
What  talents  bright  and  useful,  what  good  deeds, 
The  question  is.    To  this  an  answer  fair 
The  general  heart  secures." 

There  is  a  fear  that  these  simple  habits  may 
be  corrupted,  and  he  cautions  his  fellow-citizens 
against  imitating  the  customs  and  policies  of  the 
old  world :  — 

"  Ah  then,  my  favored  land,  thyself  revere  ! 
Look  not  to  Europe  for  examples  just, 
Of  order,  manners,  customs,  doctrines,  laws, 

Of  happiness  or  virtue. 
******* 

See  the  world 
All  set  to  sale  ;  truth,  friendship,  public  trust, 


TIMOTHY   D WIGHT  173 

A  nation's  weal,  religion,  scripture,  oaths 
Struck  off  by  inch  of  candle. 
See  war,  from  year  to  year,  from  age  to  age, 
Unceasing,  open  on  mankind  the  gates 
Of  devastation ;  earth  wet-deep  with  blood, 
And  pav'd  with  corpses,  cities  whelm'd  in  flames. 
******* 
To  gain  a  wigwam  built  on  Nootka  Sound, 
Or  Falkland's  fruitful  isles,  or  to  secure 
That  rare  soap-bubble  by  children  wise, 
Floated  in  air,  and  ting'd  with  colors  fine, 
National  honor. 

Say  then,  ah  say,  wouldst  thou  for  these  exchange 
Thy  sacred  institutions  ?   Thy  mild  laws  ? 
Thy  pure  religion  ?  morals  un corrupt  ? 
Thy  plain  and  honest  manners,  — order,  peace, 
And  general  weal  ?  " 

But  his  own  land  is  not  free  from  stain. 
Slavery  rests  upon  it ;  and  before  the  question 
became  a  burning  issue  he  sets  his  face  against 
it:  — 

"  Thus  slavery's  blast  bids  sense  and  virtue  die ; 
Thus  lowered  to  dust  the  sons  of  Afric  lie. 
Hence  sages  grave,  to  lunar  systems  given, 
Shall  ask  why  two-legg'd  brutes  were  made  by  Heaven  t- 
******* 
O  thou  chief  curse,  since  curses  here  began, 
First  guilt,  first  woe,  first  infamy  of  man  ; 
Thou  spot  of  hell,  deep  smirch' d  on  human  mind  ; 
Alike  in  church,  in  state,  and  household  all, 


THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Supreme  memorial  of  the  world's  dread  fall  ; 
O  slavery  !  laurel  of  the  infernal  mind, 
Proud  Satan's  triumph  over  lost  mankind." 


The  description  of  the  country  minister  is  so 
true  to  the  author's  own  experience,  and  so 
applicable  to  many  other  cases,  that  it  is  worth 
quoting.  It  is  from  the  minister's  own  point 
of  view,  not  a  general  account  of  his  theo 
logical  or  legal  position  in  the  community. 
The  village  minister 

"  All  rejoic'd  to  meet, 
And  all  reluctant  parting  ;  every  aim, 
Benevolent,  aiding  with  purpose  kind  ; 
While  season'd  with  unblemished  cheerfulness, 
Far  distant  from  the  tainted  mirth  of  vice, 
Their  hearts  disclose  each  contemplation  sweet 
Of  things  divine  ;  and  blend  in  friendship  pure, 

Friendship  sublim'd  by  piety  and  love. 
*  ****** 

Not  the  least  happy,  he  who  free  from  broils, 
And  base  ambition,  vain  and  bustling  pomp, 
Amid  a  friendly  cure  and  competence 
Tastes  the  pure  pleasure  of  parochial  life, 
What  though  no  crowd  of  clients  at  his  gate, 
To  falsehood  and  injustice  bribe  his  tongue, 
And  flatter  into  guilt  ;  what  though  no  bright 
And  gilded  prospects  lure  ambition  on 
To  legislative  pride  or  chair  of  state. 


TIMOTHY  DWIGHT  175 

...  His  virtues,  round  the  year 
Repeating,  and  his  faults  with  microscope 
Inverted,  lessen  'till  they  steal  from  sight.'" 

"Greenfield  Hill  "can  easily  be  read  to-day, 
not  merely  as  an  antiquary  would  examine  an 
ancient  manuscript  for  its  bearings  on  the 
history  of  a  previous  generation,  but  for  the 
purpose  of  seeing  what  the  fathers  read,  and 
helping  us  to  appreciate  the  qualities  that  now 
make  virile  the  best  parts  of  American  life. 

Of  Dwight's  minor  poems,  a  list  would 
include  "The  Critics,  A  Fable,"  "The  Trial 
of  Faith,"  "Address  of  the  Genius  of  Colum 
bia  to  the  Members  of  the  Continental  Conven 
tion,"  and  "Message  of  Mordecai  to  Esther." 
As  a  hymn  writer  he  issued  an  edition  of  "  The 
Psalms  of  David,"  the  translations  being  in  the 
main  by  Dr.  Watts,  but  many  of  them  he 
versified  anew  in  proper  metres.  He  will, 
however,  be  remembered  longest  by  the  famous 
hymn  which  is  now  sung  in  many  lands,  — 
"  I  love  thy  kingdom,  Lord." 

The  literary  exertions  of  Timothy  Dwight  up 
to  the  time  of  his  election  as  President  of  Yale 
College  give  slight  indication  of  the  greatness 


i;6      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

and  force  of  his  character  or  his  influence 
throughout  the  young  Republic,  both  as  a  theo 
logian  and  leader  of  men.  From  the  moment 
he  assumed  the  control  of  the  college  in  1795, 
his  reputation  grew  as  that  of  few  of  his  con 
temporaries.  He  soon  was  recognized  as  one  of 
the  foremost  preachers,  a  man  of  administrative 
ability,  a  statesman  whose  opinions  were  held 
in  reverence,  the  originator  and  cooperator  with 
others  in  the  founding  and  sustaining  of  institu 
tions.  What  he  said  was  quoted  everywhere, 
his  information  on  all  kinds  of  subjects  being 
accurate  and  extensive.  "  I  think  I  never  knew 
a  man,"  said  Professor  N.  W.  Taylor,  speaking 
of  him,  "  who  took  so  deep  an  interest  in  every 
thing,  from  the  best  mode  of  cultivating  a  cab 
bage,  as  well  as  the  phenomena  of  the  heavens 
or  the  employments  of  angels."  He  had  been 
farmer,  school-teacher,  parish-minister,  legis 
lator,  student,  and  literary  man;  and  from  all 
these  different  pursuits  he  had  gained,  accord 
ing  to  the  voracity  of  his  mind  and  general 
sympathy,  a  fund  of  experience  and  information 
which  made  him  a  marked  person. 

When   he   entered   upon   the   duties   of   the 


TIMOTHY  D WIGHT  177 

president's  office,  he  found  the  college  in  a  dis 
organized  condition ;  the  number  of  students 
had  decreased,  discipline  was  relaxed,  and  infi 
delity  was  rampant.  Dwight,  having  had  expe 
rience  with  almost  a  thousand  scholars,  both 
boys  and  girls,  in  his  excellent  schools  at  North 
ampton  and  Greenfield,  proceeded  at  once  to 
grapple  with  the  situation,  and  by  his  vigor  and 
determination  succeeded  in  laying  anew  the 
foundations  for  the  great  university  that  has 
grown  from  these  early  beginnings.  The  presi 
dent,  being  also  an  instructor  of  the  senior  class 
and  Professor  in  Belles  Lettres,  Oratory,  and 
Theology,  came  into  close  touch  with  the  stu 
dents,  and  was  able  to  inspire  them  with  some 
of  his  enthusiasm,  and  meet  them  in  arguments 
that  always  meant  their  defeat.  Besides,  their 
respect  grew  when  they  understood  his  methods 
of  work.  For  many  years  an  acute  pain  just 
back  of  the  eyes  prevented  him  from  reading 
or  writing  for  more  than  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
at  a  time.  He  was  compelled,  therefore,  to  use 
an  amanuensis,  and  whatever  writing  he  accom 
plished  was  with  the  assistance  of  another ;  and 
he  was  known  to  dictate  a  letter  and  a  sermon 


1/8      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN    LETTERS 

at  the  same  time,  sometimes  dictating  as  many 
as  three  letters  at  once.  It  is  difficult  to  think 
of  one  dictating  poetry,  but  this  he  often  did, 
the  result  being  not  altogether  satisfactory 
from  a  literary  point  of  view.  This  method  of 
composition  accounts  in  some  degree  for  his 
directness  of  style  and  its  declamatory  char 
acter,  though  entailing  very  observable  de 
fects,  as  Professor  Moses  Coit  Tyler  describes 
it,  "  Composition  by  the  tongue,  rather  than  the 
pen ;  the  style  of  an  eloquent  declaimer  with 
the  audience  before  him ;  clever  improvisation, 
—  affluent,  emphatic,  sonorous,  moving  on  in 
balanced  numbers  "  without  lightness  and  ease 
and  charm. 

The  most  important  of  Timothy  Dwight's 
literary  labors  after  going  to  New  Haven  were 
without  doubt  the  sermons  that  he  preached 
to  the  students,  both  by  reason  of  their  imme 
diate  effect,  and  their  influence  on  religious 
thought  when  published  after  his  death,  in 
five  volumes,  under  the  title  "Theology  Ex 
plained  and  Defended."  These  sermons  had 
first  been  preached  in  Greenfield  extemporane 
ously  from  notes,  as  was  his  earlier  custom, 


TIMOTHY  DWIGHT  179 

but  later  were  written  out  carefully  and  arranged 
in  a  course  which  he  repeated  in  the  college 
chapel  every  four  years,  so  that  every  student 
might  receive  his  systematic  instruction.  The 
sermons  taken  as  a  whole  constitute  a 
thoroughly  logical  system  of  religious  thought, 
dealing  with  a  wide  range  of  theological  sub 
jects  from  philosophy  to  specific  doctrines, 
aiming  to  appeal  to  reason  as  well  as  faith, 
and  to  combat  the  intellectual  objections  which 
Hume,  Priestley,  and  Paine  had  raised  against 
the  truth  of  Christianity  as  interpreted  by  the 
orthodox  thinkers.  Though  Dwight's  teaching 
is  a  milder  form  of  Calvinism  than  that  of 
Edwards,  and  differed  from  Hopkinsianism,  he 
did  not  eliminate  the  severity  of  the  older 
theologians.  Without  attempting  to  assign 
him  a  theological  position,  it  can  be  said  of 
the  sermons  that  they  were  a  departure  from 
the  usual  modes  of  preaching,  in  that  they  are 
full  of  original  thought,  clear,  at  times  sprightly, 
bringing  to  bear  upon  the  topics  chosen  a  mass 
of  information  and  argument,  which  explains 
their  popularity  almost  to  the  present  day; 
and  they  have  long  been  considered  by  theo- 


ISO      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

logians  to  be  a  valuable  contribution  to  their 
science. 

Two  other  volumes  of  D wight's  sermons 
were  published  in  Edinburgh  in  1828,  being 
a  selection  of  his  more  practical  and  brilliant 
discourses,  two  of  which  became  noted  as  a 
defence  of  religion  against  the  attacks  of  infi 
delity  ;  they  were  originally  printed  by  them 
selves,  having  for  their  subject  "The  Nature 
and  Danger  of  Infidel  Philosophy."  There 
were  many  other  discourses  which  he  delivered 
on  special  occasions,  indicating  his  interest  in 
public  affairs,  the  most  valuable  being  "  On  the 
Character  of  George  Washington,  Esquire," 
preached  on  February  22,  1800.  There  is  no 
better  contemporary  analysis  of  Washington's 
character.  He  asserted  that  "Perhaps  there 
never  was  a  mind  on  which  theoretical  specu 
lations  had  less  influence,  and  the  decisions  of 
common  sense  more." 

In  his  political  views  Dr.  Dwight  was  out 
spoken  both  in  the  class  room  and  in  the  pul 
pit.  Fear  of  the  influence  of  French  ideas 
and  belief  in  a  strong  central  government 
made  him  a  Federalist  of  the  Hamilton  school. 


TIMOTHY  D WIGHT  l8l 

With  many  of  the  clergy  he  opposed  the 
democracy  of  Jefferson ;  and  of  all  imaginable 
evils  he  considered  an  alliance  with  France 
the  worst.  The  Fast  Day  sermon  of  July  23, 
1812,  called  the  "Burden  of  Dumah,"  was  a 
strange  application  of  prophecy  to  political 
conditions,  wherein  he  argued  that  the  country 
was  now  under  the  sixth  and  seventh  vials  of 
wrath,  illustrated  by  the  effect  of  the  French 
Revolution  on  America.  "  The  touch  of 
France,"  he  said,  "is  pollution;  her  embrace 
is  death;"  and  in  another  place  he  stated  that 
"  to  ally  America  to  France  is  to  chain  living 
health  and  beauty  to  a  corpse  dissolving  with 
the  plague."  Naturally  the  War  of  1812  was 
looked  upon  as  a  national  calamity,  and  he 
spoke  against  it  as  unnecessary  and  unjust; 
but  the  greatest  danger  was  that  the  superior 
force  of  the  enemy  might  drive  us  to  seek 
aid  from  France.  There  is  no  doubt  but  that 
Dwight's  Federalist  position  settled  the  trend 
of  Yale  College  for  many  years.  When  the 
news  of  Waterloo  was  brought  to  New  Haven 
it  was  long  remembered  with  what  unction 
he  prayed  in  thanksgiving,  and  read  with 


1 82      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

emphasis  the  passage  of  Scripture  which  he 
thought  most  applicable  to  the  fall  of  Napo 
leon  :  "  The  whole  earth  is  at  rest  and  is 
quiet;  they  break  forth  into  singing.  How 
art  thou  fallen  from  heaven,  O  Lucifer,  son  of 
the  morning  ;  how  art  thou  cut  down  to  the 
ground,  which  did  weaken  the  nations." 

A  curious  little  book  of  Dr.  Dwight's  which 
apparently  was  not  published  until  after  his 
death  is  "An  Essay  on  the  Stage."  In  ap 
proaching  such  a  topic  he  could  not  draw 
largely  on  personal  experience,  so  he  reiter 
ates  the  general  phrases  of  condemnation  that 
characterized  the  pulpit  of  his  time,  using 
against  all  forms  of  the  modern  drama  the 
ancient  objections  against  the  amphitheatre 
and  the  circus.  Not  finding  in  the  Bible  the 
term  Sacred  Drama  even,  not  "a  single  dra 
matic  piece"  in  the  sacred  pages,  he  con 
cludes  that  there  is  no  divine  sanction  for 
such  performances.  The  idea  of  the  stage 
being  a  moral  teacher  seemed  to  shock  the 
good  doctor  exceedingly,  and  he  makes  the 
strange  exclusive  claim  that  if  this  is  admitted 
"it  would  infringe  on  the  claims  of  the  word 


TIMOTHY  DWIGHT  183 

of  God,"  the  only  moral  teacher  being  the 
Word  and  its  Author,  who  in  the  accomplish 
ment  of  moral  growth  "will  have  no  rival  but 
declares  that  he  himself  alone  can  accomplish 
this  great  work;"  as  if  the  Divine  Being  was 
jealous  of  whatever  uplifting  influences  there 
might  be  in  the  world !  Any  possibility  of 
reforming  the  stage  would  not  be  entertained 
for  a  moment,  because  "  evil  can  never  be 
reformed  ;  it  must  be  changed  in  its  essence. 
We  might  as  soon  attempt  to  reform  the  gam 
bler  by  teaching  him  fair  game,  or  the  thief, 
by  teaching  him  concealment,  as  attempt  to 
reform  the  stage."  The  actor  was  to  be 
placed  on  "the  splendid  tarnished  list,"  —  a 
man  "with  St.  Anthony's  fire  in  his  veins  and 
St.  Vitus's  dance  in  his  limbs,"  who,  though  a 
mere  mimic,  learns  how  to  deceive  the  multi 
tude.  Remembering,  however,  the  dry  and 
sometimes  uproarious  sermons  that  he  has 
heard,  the  ministerial  critic  of  the  drama  ad 
mits  that  there  is  something  in  the  actor's 
retort  to  the  pulpit.  "  You  are  a  speaking,  life 
less,  man-like  frame  more  fitted  by  your  lion- 
like  roar,  and  hideous  groans,  and  clown-like 


1 84      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

appearance,  to  disgust  than  to  command  the 
attention,  the  affections,  and  the  actions  of  your 
audience."  The  whole  book  is  written  from  a 
one-sided  point  of  view  and  reveals  the  utter 
inability  of  the  author  to  perceive  the  art  or 
beauty  of  the  drama  in  any  of  its  forms.  It 
is  of  the  essence  of  Puritanism  untouched  by 
the  love  of  warmth  or  color,  or  even  literary 
excellence.  While  this  is  true,  there  is  much 
in  the  book  besides  criticism  of  the  stage;  it 
is  a  general  moral  treatise,  and,  though  at 
times  ponderous,  has  in  it  many  wise  remarks 
and  admonitions  on  life,  which  befit  the  stately 
theologian  dealing  with  questions  of  greater 
lightness  than  usual. 

By  his  conspicuous  position  as  an  orator  and 
author,  a  man  of  learning  and  judgment,  a 
friend  of  the  leading  professional  and  politi 
cal  men  of  his  state,  and  indeed  of  the  coun 
try,  President  D wight  exerted  a  widespread 
influence.  One  of  his  pupils  called  him  "  a 
Father  to  New  England,  —  her  moral  legisla 
tor,"  and  others,  not  so  appreciative,  perhaps 
disciplined  students,  spoke  irreverently  of  him 
as  "  Old  Pope  Dwight."  His  work  was  by  no 


TIMOTHY   D WIGHT  185 

means  confined  to  the  college  or  the  church. 
It  was  he  who  formed  the  plan,  in  1799,  of  the 
Connecticut  Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences, 
contributing  to  the  meetings  by  preparing  val 
uable  papers,  notably  "  A  Statistical  History 
of  New  Haven,"  and  "  Observations  on  Lan 
guage."  He  was  one  of  the  promoters  of 
Andover  Theological  Seminary,  and  a  founder 
of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions,  preaching  the  sermon  before 
the  latter  body,  September  16,  1813. 

The  crowning  literary  work  of  a  long  and 
earnest  life  was  the  "  Travels  in  New  Eng 
land  and  New  York,"  published  some  years 
after  his  death.  Many  consider  these  bulky 
volumes  as  the  most  important  gift  that  the 
good  doctor  has  made  to  American  letters. 
Southey,  who  reviewed  them  at  length  in  the 
Quarterly  Review,  speaking  of  the  work  as  a 
whole,  says,  "Though  the  humblest  in  its  pre 
tences,  this  is  the  most  important  of  his  writ 
ings,  and  will  derive  additional  value  from  time, 
whatever  may  become  of  his  poetry  and  of 
his  sermons."  The  "  Travels  "  came  into  exist 
ence  gradually  through  many  years  and  with- 


1 86      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN    LETTERS 

y 

out  any  intention  at  first  of  being  more  than 
a  record  for  his  family.  In  the  first  year  of 
his  Presidency  at  Yale,  he  decided  to  use  his 
vacations  as  a  means  of  exercise  and  enjoy 
ment  ;  so  he  drove  about  the  country  from 
town  to  town,  going  sometimes  as  far  as  New 
York,  always  with  his  note-book  near,  jotting 
down  for  his  family  the  incidents  of  the  day, 
the  condition  of  the  country  through  which 
he  passed,  the  character  of  the  inhabitants, 
conversations  with  leading  men  about  politics, 
the  weather  and  the  crops,  and  other  bits  of 
curious  and  new  information  that  he  gained 
by  the  wayside.  These  recorded  peregrinations, 
repeated  for  successive  vacations,  soon  pro 
duced  such  a  mass  of  notes,  journals,  and 
diaries  that  the  plan  was  formed  of  weaving 
them  into  a  book,  with  the  view  of  presenting 
an  eye-witness  account  of  the  state  of  New 
England,  for  the  information  of  the  people 
and  the  enlightenment  of  foreigners,  especially 
the  English,  who  still  thought  of  America  as 
a  wilderness.  Favorite  college  students  vol 
unteered  to  write  out  the  notes  at  his  dictation ; 
and  the  summer  travels  soon  were  reduced  to 


TIMOTHY   DWIGHT  l8/ 

reams  of  papers,  only  waiting  for  the  printer, 
to  come  forth  to  the  public  in  four  stately  vol 
umes.  They  contain  literally  everything  that 
might  strike  the  physical  eye  or  the  mind's 
eye  in  journeys  through  a  limited  section  of 
the  world, — scenery,  the  height  of  hills  and 
the  depths  of  rivers,  the  general  lay  of  the 
land,  the  names  of  the  trees  and  fruits  and 
vegetables,  the  produce  of  each  locality,  the 
number  of  the  population,  the  progress  made 
in  society,  the  buildings,  the  industries,  with, 
as  Southey  says,  "a  delightful  curiosity  in 
strange  rocks,  whirlwinds,  and  insects."  There 
are  preserved  in  these  pages  old  superstitions 
and  legends  that  would  long  ago  have  vanished 
if  they  had  not  caught  the  ear  of  the  inquisi 
tive  wanderer.  History  and  character  sketches 
are  placed  side  by  side  with  good  stories  and 
epitaphs  on  tombstones.  Biographies  are  writ 
ten  down  at  first  hand,  and  accounts  of  battles 
are  received  from  soldiers  who  fought  under 
Putnam  and  Warren.  Indian  stories  and  tales 
of  the  early  settlers  are  given  with  as  much 
precision  as  if  they  were  being  recounted  for 
the  archives  of  a  historical  society.  The  book, 


1 88      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

in  fine,  is  a  panoramic  picture  of  the  social, 
industrial,  educational,  and  religious  condition 
of  New  England  at  the  end  of  the  eighteenth 
and  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  centuries. 
It  is  genuinely  interesting  and  readable,  and 
of  inestimable  value  to  the  historian  or  the 
student  of  manners  and  customs. 

The  " Travels"  are  in  the  form  of  lengthy 
letters  to  an  imaginary  Englishman  who  is  kept 
well  informed  about  the  advantages  of  America 
over  the  mother  country,  and  whose  prejudices 
and  superciliousness  are  not  allowed  to  bias 
him  against  the  truth,  for  as  the  author  says, 
"  To  the  task  he  was  greatly  prompted  by  the 
unfair  and  illiberal  accounts  given  of  us  by 
foreigners  who  have  done  little  else  than  cari 
cature  both  the  country  and  its  inhabitants  .  .  . 
society  and  character  of  government."  It  is 
noted  that  America  has  no  law  of  primogeni 
ture;  and  in  describing  the  villages  he  is  justly 
proud  :  "  A  succession  of  New  England  villages 
composed  of  neat  houses,  surrounding  neat 
schoolhouses  and  churches  adorned  with  gar 
dens,  meadows,  and  orchards,  and  exhibiting 
the  universally  easy  circumstances  of  the  in- 


TIMOTHY   D WIGHT  189 

habitants  is,  at  least  in  my  opinion,  one  of  the 
most  delightful  prospects  which  the  world  can 
afford."  Of  the  national  government,  he  says, 
though  foreigners  "  see  it  in  theory  more  liable 
to  fluctuations  than  any  other,  yet  they  are 
obliged  by  facts  to  acknowledge  that  it  is  one  of 
the  most  stable  and  unchanging."  He  replies 
indignantly  to  the  English  opinion  that  the 
American  countenance  has  undergone  a  change 
and  is  growing  in  features  more  like  the  savage 
Indians,  and  exclaims,  "  Except  by  the  religious 
part  of  the  British  nation  we  seem  to  be  chiefly 
unknown  or  forgotten  in  the  character  of  ra 
tional  beings."  The  American  patriot  speaks 
out  everywhere  in  the  book. 

The  biographical  sketches  contained  in  this 
work  are  well  done  and  valuable,  especially  the 
accounts  of  Judge  Oliver  Ellsworth  and  General 
Phinehas  Lyman,  and  of  many  other  important 
New  England  men  about  whom  delightful  anec 
dotes  are  told.  There  is  a  vivid  description  also 
of  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill.  To  illustrate  the 
strange  mixture  of  fact  and  opinion  with  curious 
information  in  the  record  one  has  only  to  read  the 
six  reasons  given  why  the  river  at  Niagara  Falls 


1 90      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN    LETTERS 

never  moves  faster  than  six  miles  an  hour,  —  a 
question  which  was  argued  at  length  with  the 
ferryman  who  did  not  agree  with  the  traveller. 

Though  the  book  has  no  logical  order  in 
the  arrangement  of  its  facts,  being  a  huge 
note-book  of  everything  under  the  sun,  with  a 
kind  of  Sunday  newspaper  method  in  its  inclu- 
siveness,  it  has  little  in  it  of  dulness,  much 
of  cleverness  and  even  brilliancy. 

When  Dr.  Dwight  was  laid  at  rest  in  1817, 
undoubtedly  a  great  man  had  passed  away. 
For  many  years  his  dignified  presence  and 
vigorous  character,  his  attainment  and  power 
as  a  speaker  and  thinker,  had  made  him  a  force 
in  American  life.  When  one  considers  these 
characteristics  and  adds  to  them  his  numerous 
writings  and  his  influence  on  the  careers  of 
young  college  men,  one  can  understand  what 
may  have  been  the  foundations  for  the  exag 
gerated  opinion  of  Judge  Sherman,  one  of  his 
friends,  who  said,  "  I  have  often  expressed  the 
opinion,  which  length  of  time  has  continually 
strengthened,  that  no  man  except  '  the  Father 
of  his  Country '  had  conferred  greater  benefits 
on  our  nation  than  President  Dwight." 


CHAPTER   VI 

WILLIAM    ELLERY    CHANNING 

DURING  the  forty  years  of  his  ministry  in 
Boston,  from  1803  to  1842,  William  Ellery 
Channing  was  one  of  the  best  known  men  in 
America.  Editions  of  his  works  were  issued 
in  England  and  France.  The  words  spoken  in 
his  New  England  pulpit  made  their  way  every 
where.  But  he  was  neither  a  literary  man,  nor 
profound  scholar,  nor  philosopher.  He  never 
but  once  set  himself  deliberately  to  write  a 
book.  This  he  did  not  finish.  His  originality 
was  not  great  unless  we  accept  Kenan's  criti 
cism  that  the  originality  of  Channing  is  in  "the 
idea  of  a  pure  Christianity,  free  from  all  ties 
of  sect ;  in  his  aversion  to  all  spiritual  despot 
ism,  even  when  freely  accepted ;  in  his  hatred 
against  everything  which  he  calls  a  degrading 
uniformity  of  opinions."  His  writings  are 
mostly  collected  sermons,  book-reviews,  lec- 
191 


IQ2      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

tures,  open  letters  to  statesmen,  and  treatises  on 
moral  and  political  questions  of  the  day.  These 
were  written  for  the  occasion  that  brought  them 
forth,  without  any  intention  of  their  being  put 
into  permanent  form,  so  they  have  not  the 
finish  of  serious  literary  work.  The  style  is 
sometimes  prolix,  and  the  illustrations  are  often 
dull.  But  the  secret  of  his  great  power  is  to 
be  found  in  the  moral  rather  than  the  intellec 
tual  force  of  his  work. 

Referring  to  the  enrichment  of  American 
civilization  after  the  Revolution,  Martineau  says 
very  truly  of  him,  "Adams  was  ready  to  secure 
it  the  honor  of  statesmanship ;  Story,  to  cre 
ate  its  jurisprudence;  Allston,  its  art;  and 
Channing  its  moral  literature."  Aside  from 
his  distinctly  theological  sermons,  his  writ 
ings,  taken  as  a  whole,  may  fitly  be  described  as 
"moral  literature."  Their  aim  is  not  contro 
versial,  but  ethical.  The  standard  of  conduct, 
both  private  and  public,  which  he  maintained, 
is  of  the  highest.  Next  to  this  unfaltering  loy 
alty  to  his  ideal,  he  had  a  love  for  the  beauty 
of  holiness,  which  was  ever  present  in  his  en 
thusiasms. 


WILLIAM    ELLERY  CHANNING  193 

Charming,  from  the  early  days  in  Newport, 
where  he  was  born  on  April  7,  1780,  to  his 
college  life  and  the  experience  as  a  tutor  in 
Virginia,  was  peculiarly  under  influences  that 
developed  the  spiritual  side  of  his  nature. 
Bred  in  a  gentleman's  family,  surrounded  by 
the  sweetness  of  his  mother  and  the  strong 
manliness  of  his  father,  he  enjoyed  a  healthy 
and  normal  life.  The  conversation  at  his 
father's  table  was  stimulating  when  there  were 
visits  from  such  men  as  Dr.  Stiles,  who  fostered 
in  him,  as  he  afterward  said,  "  the  indignation 
which  I  feel  toward  every  invasion  of  human 
rights " ;  Dr.  Hopkins,  from  whom  he  first 
gained  his  convictions  of  the  iniquity  of  slavery, 
and  whose  doctrine  of  disinterestedness  ap 
pealed  to  him ;  and  Father  Thurston,  a  Bap 
tist  minister  who  was  earnest  in  checking  the 
vice  of  drunkenness  then  prevalent  in  Newport. 
A  personal  experience  like  the  following,  called 
into  being  his  first  touch  of  sympathy  which 
all  through  his  life  was  ready  to  express  itself 
in  act  and  word.  "  I  remember  an  incident  in 
my  childhood,"  he  said,  "which  has  given  a 
turn  to  my  whole  life  and  character.  I  found 


IQ4      THE   CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

a  nest  of  birds  in  my  father's  field  which  held 
four  young  ones.  Every  day  I  returned  to  feed 
them.  As  soon  as  the  school  was  done,  I  would 
run  home  for  some  bread  and  sit  by  the  nest 
and  feed  them.  When  I  came  one  morning,  I 
found  them  all  cut  up  into  quarters.  The  grass 
around  was  red  with  blood.  I  never  forgot  my 
feeling.  The  impression  will  never  be  worn 
away."  While  at  New  London,  where  he  was 
sent  to  prepare  for  college  under  his  uncle,  the 
Rev.  Henry  Channing,  he  began  to  take  an  in 
terest  in  religious  questions,  and  to  gain  some 
thing  of  the  free  and  tolerant  spirit  which  was 
beginning  to  grow  in  the  midst  of  the  Calvin 
ism  of  Connecticut.  He  entered  Harvard  Col 
lege  in  1 794  with  a  fine  class  of  fellows,  among 
whom  were  Judge  Story  and  Joseph  Emerson. 
Judge  Story,  writing  about  him  in  later  years 
said,  "  The  qualities  of  mind  and  character 
which  then  were  unfolded  to  my  own  view 
were  precisely  the  same  which  in  after  life  gave 
him  such  celebrity."  His  friends  all  speak  of 
him  as  an  enthusiastic  companion,  small  in  stat 
ure,  but  ready  to  prolong  his  encounters  in 
wrestling  matches  with  a  larger  antagonist, 


WILLIAM    ELLERY   CHANNING  195 

with  a  laugh  that  was  contagious  and  never  to 
be  forgotten,  and  recognized  by  all  as  the  lead 
ing  scholar  in  his  class.  But  these  are  common 
enough  qualities.  To  understand  him  we  must 
find  out  the  elements  that  distinguished  his 
young  manhood,  because  in  a  very  real  sense 
these  were  his  life  possessions,  only  increased 
in  certain  directions  by  time  and  restrained  in 
others.  His  moral  purity  of  thought  and  act 
was  due  to  a  refinement  of  nature  which  made 
anything  gross  abhorrent.  Though  the  moral 
tone  of  the  college  was  low  when  he  entered, 
he  could  truthfully  say  that  "an  almost  instinc 
tive  shrinking  from  gross  vice,  to  which  natural 
timidity  and  religious  principle  contributed  not 
a  little,  proved  effectual  safeguards.  I  look 
back  on  the  innocence  of  my  early  life  with  no 
self-complacency,  but  I  do  recollect  it  with 
great  satisfaction  and  with  fervent  gratitude  to 
Divine  Providence."  Vivid  spiritual  insight 
was  no  less  a  characteristic  of  his.  He  had 
moments  of  exaltation,  when  the  guiding  truths 
of  his  life  flashed  out  upon  him.  He  saw  more 
in  nature  than  serenity  and  beauty,  and  felt 
that  he  was  a  part  of  the  loveliness  about  him, 


196      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

and  began  to  be  conscious  of  that  dignity  of 
the  human  soul  which  became  an  abiding  doc 
trine  with  him  through  life. 

The  books  that  seemed  to  interest  him  most 
were  those  that  dealt  with  moral  things.  He 
read  Locke,  Berkeley,  Reid,  and  Price.  "  Price 
saved  me  from  Locke's  philosophy,"  he  said, 
"  and  during  my  life  I  have  written  the  words 
Love,  Right,  etc.,  with  a  capital.  That  book 
probably  moulded  my  philosophy  into  the  form 
it  has  always  retained."  Ferguson  on  Civil 
Society  developed  his  longing  for  social  prog 
ress.  When  the  students  desired  to  express  the 
sympathy  of  the  college  with  President  John 
Adams,  he  was  selected  to  carry  out  their 
wishes.  His  love  for  freedom  of  discussion 
was  shown  by  his  refusal  to  deliver  his  Com 
mencement  Oration  unless  he  could  deal  un 
hampered  with  the  political  state  of  the  times. 

Channing's  residence  in  Richmond,  Virginia, 
from  1798  to  1800,  as  a  tutor  in  the  family  of 
a  Southern  gentleman,  was  of  great  value  in 
broadening  his  sympathies.  He  formed  an 
attachment  for  his  Virginia  friends  because  of 
their  warmth  and  hospitality.  "  Here.  I  find 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  197 

great  vices,  but  greater  virtues  than  I  left  be 
hind  me,"  he  wrote;  "there  is  one  single  trait 
which  attaches  to  the  people  I  live  with  more 
than  all  the  virtues  of  New  England.  They 
love  money  less.  They  are  more  disinter 
ested."  In  speaking  of  the  debates  in  the 
Virginia  legislature,  he  admitted,  "I  have  lis 
tened  to  these  speeches  with  a  great  deal  of 
pleasure.  The  Virginians  are  the  best  orators 
I  have  ever  heard."  But  he  found  slavery 
depressing.  "This  alone,"  he  said,  "would 
prevent  me  from  settling  in  Virginia." 

It  was  during  this  Southern  experience  that 
Channing  decided  to  enter  the  ministry.  He 
had  much  time  for  study,  and  by  an  asceticism 
which  was  severe  he  trained  himself  to  forego 
many  pleasures  and  even  necessities.  At  times 
he  would  sleep  on  the  bare  floor,  go  without 
food,  and  clothe  himself  insufficiently.  He 
read  all  kinds  of  books,  especially  histories, 
and  Rousseau,  and  Godwin's  "Caleb  Williams." 
The  thought  of  reforming  modern  society  by 
bringing  it  back  to  simple  methods  of  living 
grew  to  be  his  dominant  idea.  His  study  of 
the  Bible  and  the  evidences  of  Christianity  led 


198       THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

him  to  feel  that  religion  in  its  essence  was 
moral  truth.  The  words,  in  which  he  recorded 
his  decision  to  become  a  clergyman,  show  how 
from  the  beginning  of  his  public  career  the 
moral  rather  than  the  intellectual  element  of 
religion  appealed  to  him.  "  I  have  now  sol 
emnly  given  myself  up  to  God,"  he  wrote;  "I 
consider  love  to  Him  as  the  first  of  all  duties, 
and  morality  seems  a  branch  from  the  vigorous 
root  of  religion.  I  love  mankind  because  they 
are  the  children  of  God." 

After  a  period  of  special  preparation  in  New 
port,  to  which  he  returned  in  1800,  he  began 
to  preach  occasionally  until  his  ordination  on 
June  i,  1803,  when  he  became  the  minister  of 
the  Federal  Street  Church,  Boston,  a  position 
he  held  for  forty  years  until  his  death.  The 
pulpit  was  his  seat  of  authority.  From  it,  he 
exerted  a  moral  and  spiritual  influence  not 
only  in  Boston,  where  he  was  loved,  but  in 
widely  scattered  parts  of  the  country.  His 
appearances  out  of  his  pulpit  became  notable, 
as  when  he  delivered,  in  1819,  the  ordination 
sermon  in  Baltimore,  when  Jared  Sparks  was 
settled  over  the  Unitarian  church  in  that  city, 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  199 

but  it  was  from  Boston  that  his  influence  was 
felt  as  he  spoke  upon  the  leading  questions  of 
the  day  and  evolved  his  plans  for  the  improve 
ment  of  mankind. 

As  a  man  he  was  gentle,  refined,  courteous 
but  retiring,  and  oracular  in  his  words,  being 
able,  however,  to  impart  enthusiasm  to  those 
who  came  near  him.  As  a  preacher,  always 
writing  his  sermons,  he  was  not  carried  away 
in  passionate  appeal,  but  held  his  hearers  by 
a  sense  of  reserve  force  which  lay  behind  his 
measured  sentences  and  rounded  periods.  He 
was  small  of  stature,  thin,  with  high  cheek 
bones  and  large  dark  eyes,  having  shadows 
about  them  almost  as  dark  as  the  eyes.  When 
visibly  moved  by  his  subject  he  seemed  to 
increase  in  height  and  breadth,  and,  as  one 
expressed  it,  his  "small  body  fairly  dilated." 
There  was  no  mistaking  his  earnestness  and 
it  was  always  caught  by  the  people.  His 
manner  as  well  as  his  reasoning  held  their 
attention.  When  urging  earnestness  of  manner 
in  the  pulpit  he  once  said,  and  it  very  well 
describes  his  own  manner :  "I  do  not  mean 
that  a  minister  must  have  lungs  of  iron  and  a 


200      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

voice  of  thunder.  Noise  and  earnestness  are 
very  different  things.  I  only  mean  that  the 
minister  should  deliver  his  message  as  if  he 
felt  its  infinite  weight  .  .  .  and  this  he  may 
do  without  being  a  brawler;"  again,  "The 
expression  of  the  heart  is  the  perfection  of 
ministerial  eloquence." 

But  neither  manner  nor  personality  explains 
Channing.       His   principles    incorporated    into 
life  and  applied  to  human   conditions   insured 
him  the  hearing  that  he  received.     There  were 
certain  fundamental  conceptions  that  regulated 
his  thinking.     Foremost  among  these  was  his 
belief   in  the  essential  nobility  and  dignity  of 
the  human  soul.     The  centre  of  his  philosophy 
was  man,  and  from  man,  as  a  potentially  moral 
being,  created  to  attain  perfection,  he  examined 
the  current   theology.      Past  and  present  dog 
matism   as   well   as    political   theories   he   con 
tended    must   be    tested   by   human    sentiment 
and   reason.      This   emphasis  on  the  soul  and 
its  rights   was   in    direct   contrast   to   previous 
New  England  theological  thinking  and  caused 
the   repudiation    of    the   teaching   of    Edwards 
and  Hopkins.     Channing  was  more  under  the 


WILLIAM    ELLERY   CHANNING  2OI 

influence  of  the  writers  of  the  French  Revolu 
tion  than  the  Puritan  Fathers.  The  doctrine 
of  the  total  depravity  of  man  was  answered 
by  the  assertion  of  the  inherent  nobility  of 
man;  the  doctrine  of  a  bound  and  predesti 
nated  will  by  the  freedom  of  the  individual  life ; 
the  sovereignty  of  divine  wrath  by  the  sov 
ereignty  of  divine  love.  In  the  arguments 
against  Calvinism  Channing's  final  answer 
always  was  that  its  teachings  were  contrary  to 
the  moral  sentiments.  In  "The  Moral  Argu 
ment  against  Calvinism,"  while  he  was  willing 
to  recognize  the  moral  worth  which  the  system 
possessed,  he  frankly  stated  that  "Calvinism 
owes  its  perpetuity  to  the  influence  of  fear  in 
paralysing  the  moral  nature,"  asserting  that 
"nothing  is  so  necessary  on  this  subject  as 
to  awaken  moral  feelings  in  men's  breasts." 
When  these  moral  feelings  are  aroused  they 
have  the  right  to  judge  whatever  alleged  truth 
is  brought  to  them.  The  final  test  of  truth 
must  be  a  man's  own  mind  and  heart,  for,  as 
Channing  says,  nothing  is  gained  to  piety  by 
degrading  human  nature,  and  "  the  ultimate 
reliance  of  a  human  being  is  and  must  be  on 


202      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

his  own  mind."  Any  doctrine  which  contra 
dicts  our  ideas  and  outrages  our  feelings  can 
not  come  from  a  just  God  and  cannot  represent 
His  character.  Though  Calvinism  answers 
that  because  a  revealed  truth  opposes  the 
sense  of  rectitude,  that  is  no  reason  why  it 
should  be  neglected,  inasmuch  as  the  ultimate 
happiness  of  the  universe  may  require  a  method 
different  from  our  ideas  of  morality,  Channing 
answers  that  if  a  different  administration  of 
justice  is  required,  then  right  and  truth  can 
not  be  right  and  truth.  These  must  always 
be  eternally  the  same  both  in  the  bosom  of 
man  and  in  the  bosom  of  God. 

This  moral  revolt  against  Calvinism  led  to 
Channing's  intellectual  revolt  from  the  ortho 
dox  interpretations  of  Scripture.  Freedom  of 
discussion  and  freedom  of  the  mind  in  dealing 
with  all  of  these  questions  were  upheld  and 
exercised.  It  was  in  defending  the  right  of 
the  churches  to  free  inquiry  and  personal 
interpretation  that  he  was  drawn  into  the 
early  stages  of  the  Unitarian  controversy.  He 
thought  that  the  free  spirit  of  man  should 
neither  be  bound  by  tradition  nor  authority,  and 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  203 

that  if  a  man  ceased  to  believe  a  doctrine  and 
honestly  held  another  he  should  be  permitted 
to  hold  the  new  doctrines.  His  individual 
ism  was  so  extreme  that  he  put  more  confidence 
in  truth  as  expressed  by  the  individual  than  by 
associations  of  individuals.  He  often  exclaims 
that  no  one  is  responsible  for  his  views  but 
himself,  and  that  he  does  not  represent  any  one 
but  himself.  Associations  and  parties  might 
be  joined,  but  one  must  stand  above  both.  In 
his  "  Remarks  on  Associations,"  speaking  of 
man's  great  duty  as  a  social  being,  he  said 
the  real  duty  is  "to  open  our  minds  to  the 
thoughts,  reasonings,  and  persuasions  of  others, 
and  yet  to  hold  fast  the  sacred  right  of  private 
judgment ;  to  receive  impulses  from  our  fellow- 
beings,  and  yet  to  act  from  our  own  souls; 
to  sympathize  with  others,  and  yet  to  determine 
our  own  feelings ;  to  act  with  others  and  yet 
to  follow  our  own  consciences.  .  .  .  The  rev 
erence  for  our  own  moral  nature,  on  which  we 
have  now  insisted,  needs  earnest  and  perpetual 
inculcation."  This  desire  for  the  personal 
freedom  of  the  individual  led  him  to  fear  insti 
tutions,  to  care  little  for  the  machinery  of 


204     THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

societies,  to  look  with  disfavor  upon  organized 
charities  and  even  missions.  He  believed  in 
charities  and  missions,  but  he  thought  that 
initiative  was  crushed  out  by  the  routine  of 
a  regular  charitable  establishment,  as  he  ex 
plained  himself  more  fully :  "  An  individual 
who  thinks  that  he  is  doing  a  more  religious 
act  in  contributing  to  a  missionary  society  than 
in  doing  a  needful  act  of  kindness  to  a  relative, 
friend,  or  neighbor,  is  leaving  a  society  of  God's 
institution  for  one  of  man's  making." 

The  distinguishing  characteristic  of  Chan- 
ning  was  his  reverence  for  his  own  soul,  in  the 
search  for  truth  and  beauty  and  moral  perfec 
tion  ;  and  in  the  right  to  interpret  by  his  own 
intellect  and  feelings  what  he  had  discovered 
or  what  had  been  revealed  to  him.  He  with 
drew  apart  from  men  in  intellectual  isolation, 
where  the  voices  of  the  world  were  silent,  and 
he  listened  to  the  voice  of  God,  calm,  direct, 
and  unmistakable.  Then  when  the  truth  had 
been  apprehended  he  gave  it  to  men.  Whether 
they  could  accept  it  or  not,  he  considered  that 
he  had  done  his  duty  in  announcing  his  discov 
ery.  But  he  had  sufficient  faith  in  men  to 


WILLIAM   ELLERY  CHANNING  205 

think  that  they  would  accept  the  truth  when 
it  appealed  to  their  moral  natures  which  were 
only  waiting  to  be  stirred.  If  a  received  opin 
ion  stood  in  the  way  of  his  idea  of  right,  down 
went  the  opinion,  whether  it  was  in  religion 
or  politics,  and  no  considerations  of  fitness 
could  restrain  him.  Such  championship  of  the 
freedom  of  discussion  and  belief  in  the  right 
eousness  of  his  cause  never  came  from  egotism 
or  undue  self-assertion,  but  from  conviction. 
He  was  one  of  the  most  humble  of  men.  It 
was  a  continual  surprise  to  him  that  people 
had  heard  of  him  as  far  off  as  Germany.  But 
when  he  had  a  truth  to  proclaim  he  cared  for 
no  one  and  stood  up  in  the  might  of  a  conscious 
inspiration,  like  an  authoritative  teacher  or  a 
prophet. 

Another  of  his  characteristics  was  feeling 
joined  to  self-restraint.  The  suppressed  emo 
tion  in  his  style  gives  energy  and  dignity  to 
his  word  without  marring  it  by  exhibitions  of 
passion.  He  was  always  the  gentleman,  cour 
teous  to  his  adversaries  and  anxious  not  to  be 
misunderstood.  When  he  had  expressed  him 
self  strongly  he  invariably  added  qualifying 


206      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

statements.  Sometimes  these  became  incon 
sistencies.  He  seems  to  say  two  different 
things  at  once.  He  takes  back  with  one  hand 
what  he  gave  with  the  other.  Again,  in  dealing 
with  questions  that  would  easily  lend  themselves 
to  vigorous  criticism  he  surprises  one  by  being 
cold  and  analytic  and  self-contained.  On  the 
whole,  however,  the  even  flow  of  his  style  was 
like  his  life,  outwardly  calm  and  uneventful; 
within  burning  and  full  of  excitement. 

Channing's  writings  may  be  divided  into 
three  sections,  political,  religious,  and  philan 
thropic  ;  while  these  divisions  in  a  measure  are 
chronological  they  are  not  sharply  denned. 
He  wrote  on  all  three  subjects  in  different 
proportions  during  the  whole  of  his  productive 
life.  In  addition  there  are  a  few  essays,  dis 
tinctly  literary,  notably,  "  Remarks  on  the  Char 
acter  and  Writings  of  John  Milton,"  "  Remarks 
on  the  Life  and  Character  of  Napoleon  Bona 
parte,"  "  Remarks  on  the  Character  and  Writ 
ings  of  Fenelon,"  and  "Remarks  on  National 
Literature." 

The  literary  essays  were  book-reviews  in  the 
Christian  Examiner.  In  the  one  on  Milton  he 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  2O/ 

shows  his  interest  in  poetry,  an  interest  that 
was  fostered  afterward  by  Wordsworth  whom 
he  read  more  frequently  than  any  other  poet 
but  Shakespeare.  To  him  poetry  was  the 
"divinest  of  all  the  arts,"  and  of  God's  gifts 
he  considered  "  poetical  genius  the  most  tran 
scendent."  Channing's  thought  of  poetry  was 
noble,  for  he  believed  its  greatness  to  lie  in 
its  interpretation  of  truth,  and  in  its  inspiration 
toward  the  ideal.  It  had  in  it  the  germ  of 
immortal  life,  for  through  it,  and  by  means  of 
it,  "the  soul  is  perpetually  stretching  beyond 
what  is  present  and  visible,  struggling  against 
the  bounds  of  its  earthly  prison-house  and  seek 
ing  relief  and  joy  in  imaginings  of  the  unseen 
and  ideal  being."  In  answer  to  the  strange 
Puritanic  objections  to  poetry,  that  it  abounds 
in  illusions  and  unrealities,  his  answer  was  that 
"the  fictions  of  genius  are  often  vehicles  of 
the  sublimest  verities."  Though  Channing  had 
this  appreciation  of  poetry,  and  the  poetic 
aspect  of  nature  stimulated  him  as  when  he 
roamed  the  seashore  at  Newport,  or  crossed  the 
ocean  and  travelled  in  Switzerland,  and  visited 
Niagara,  yet  it  was  something  above  him  which 


208      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

he  enjoyed  without  entering  fully  into  its  mean 
ing.  He  could  always  have  been  an  appre 
ciative  reader  of  poetry ;  never  a  producer  of 
it.  He  had  what  in  a  vague  way  is  called  the 
poetic  temperament.  He  had  none  of  the  true 
poet's  fire.  His  biographers  speak  of  his  poetic 
potentiality.  It  is  a  favorite  way  of  biographers 
when  dealing  with  intense  natures.  There  is 
no  evidence  in  his  writings  that  he  had  the 
fancy  of  the  born  poet.  What  appreciation  he 
had  was  made.  It  never  took  vital  hold  of  him 
enough  to  lighten  his  orations  and  sermons  with 
anything  above  commonplace  imagery.  His 
interest  was  greatest  in  Milton's  prose.  This 
took  hold  of  him  because  it  expressed  what  he 
believed  in,  the  loftiness  of  virtue,  the  love  of 
liberty  and  contempt  for  "  hereditary  faith,  ser 
vile  reverence  for  established  power."  The 
theological  Milton  maintaining  human  freedom 
and  applying  reason  to  Christian  doctrines  was 
a  figure  of  heroic  proportions.  The  final  joy  of 
Channing  when  considering  Milton  was  that 
he  was  an  anti-Trinitarian,  for  it  gave  him  a 
new  name  with  which  to  back  up  his  own 
position  :  "  Our  Trinitarian  adversaries  are  per- 


WILLIAM   ELLERY  CHANNING  209 

petually  ringing  in  our  ears  the  names  of  the 
Fathers  and  Reformers.  We  take  Milton, 
Locke,  and  Newton,  and  place  them  in  our 
front,  and  want  no  others  to  oppose  to  the 
whole  army  of  great  names  on  the  opposite 
side.  Before  these  intellectual  suns,  the  stars 
of  self-named  Orthodoxy  hide  their  diminished 
heads." 

In  the  essays  on  Napoleon  and  Fenelon, 
Channing  applies  to  each  the  principle  of  his 
high  conception  of  human  character.  His  judg 
ment  on  both  men  is  neither  historical  nor  liter 
ary.  It  is  ethical.  Napoleon,  therefore,  appears 
as  the  basest  of  men,  Fenelon  as  the  noblest. 
In  the  general  condemnation  of  the  one  and 
the  unrivalled  praise  of  the  other,  there  is  a 
lack  of  analysis  and  discrimination,  the  result  of 
applying  a  general  principle  to  a  particular  case 
without  an  insight  into  motives  and  accomplish 
ment.  Napoleon's  love  of  power  and  ambition, 
that  led  him  into  cruelty  and  disregard  of  the 
rights  of  others,  gave  Channing  the  chance  to 
discuss  the  relations  between  the  individual  and 
government,  Republicanism,  Monarchy,  Mili 
tarism,  and  industrial  prosperity.  The  main 


210      THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN    LETTERS 

purpose  of  the  essay  is  set  forth  in  the  perora 
tion,  "  We  have  labored  to  show  the  superiority 
of  moral  power  and  influence  to  that  sway, 
which  has  for  ages  been  seized  with  bloody  and 
eager  hands.  We  have  labored  to  hold  up,  to 
unmeasured  reprobation,  him  who  would  estab 
lish  an  Empire  of  brute  force  over  rational 
beings.  We  have  labored  to  hold  forth,  as  the 
enemy  of  the  race,  the  man  who  in  any  way 
would  fetter  the  human  mind,  and  subject  other 
wills  to  his  own.  In  a  word,  we  have  desired 
to  awaken  others  and  ourselves  to  a  just  rever 
ence  of  our  highest  powers,  and  especially  to 
that  moral  force,  that  energy  of  holy,  virtuous 
purpose,  without  which  we  are  slaves  amidst 
the  freest  institutions." 

One  of  Channing's  best  essays  was  the  pro 
found  paper  on  "  National  Literature."  With 
the  growth  of  nationality  and  the  development 
of  a  genuine  Americanism,  he  foresaw  the  need 
and  possibility  of  a  native  literature,  to  give 
expression  to  the  thoughts  that  were  seeking 
utterance,  and  to  lead  the  people  to  ideals 
of  patriotism  and  knowledge  and  religion. 
Coming  just  before  the  creative  period  in 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  211 

American  literature,  when  it  flowered  forth  in 
philosophy  and  poetry  and  fiction,  the  essay 
marks  the  transition  from  the  meagreness  of 
intellectual  output,  to  the  abundance  that  was 
so  soon  to  come.  Channing  seemed,  therefore, 
conscious  of  the  impetus  to  letters  that  would 
result  from  the  broader  and  freer  use  of  the 
human  intellect  for  which  he  contended.  It 
was  no  accident  that  American  literature  grew 
up  in  the  path  of  the  movement  for  an  unre 
strained  use  of  reason  and  investigation.  His 
conception  of  the  value  of  literature  was  not 
without  an  ethical  content.  He  felt  that  it 
would  produce  nobler  men.  "  The  great  dis 
tinction  of  a  country,"  he  wrote,  "is  that  it 
produces  superior  men.  Its  natural  advantages 
are  not  to  be  disdained;  but  they  are  of  sec 
ondary  importance.  No  matter  what  races  of 
animals  a  country  breeds,  the  great  question 
is,  Does  it  breed  a  noble  race  of  men  ?  No 
matter  what  its  soil  may  be,  the  great  question 
is,  How  far  is  it  prolific  of  moral  and  intellectual 
power?"  Again  he  asserted  that  "the  true 
sovereigns  of  a  country  are  those  who  deter 
mine  its  mind,  its  modes  of  thinking,  tastes, 


212      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

its  principles."  He  exposed  two  errors,  which 
constantly  found  their  way  into  print,  one  be 
ing  that,  since  we  had  English  literature  to 
draw  from,  it  was  unnecessary  for  us  to  develop 
one  of  our  own,  and  the  other  that  what  America 
needed  was  useful  knowledge  rather  than  what 
was  termed  "elegant  literature."  Of  the  first 
he  said,  we  should  not  be  confined  to  English 
literature,  but  the  literatures  of  Continental 
Europe  should  also  be  ours,  and  this,  instead 
of  being  a  reason  for  making  sterile  the  seed 
of  self-expression,  should  rather  fertilize  it; 
and  in  dealing  with  the  second,  he  enlarged  the 
sphere  of  what  was  termed  useful  knowledge, 
by  showing  that  any  literature  was  useful  which 
"  calls  forth  the  highest  faculties,  which  ex 
presses  and  communicates  energy  of  thought, 
fruitfulness  of  invention,  force  of  moral  pur 
pose,  a  thirst  for  the  true,  and  a  delight  in  the 
beautiful."  He  considered  history  revealing 
the  causes  and  means  of  happiness,  poetry 
touching  the  springs  of  the  human  soul,  and 
philosophy  treating  of  the  foundations  of  knowl 
edge  and  duty,  to  be  as  useful  as  mathematics. 
When  the  essayist  dealt  with  the  means  of  pro- 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  21$ 

ducing  a  native  literature,  he  gave  due  credit 
to  institutions  of  learning  for  which  he  pleaded, 
and  the  arousing  of  individual  genius ;  but 
he  argued  for  "a  new  action  of  the  religious 
principle,"  asserting  that  our  "  chief  hopes  of 
an  improved  literature  rest  on  our  hopes  of  an 
improved  religion."  Channing  saw  that  the 
idealism  which  inspired  the  noble  deed,  or  the 
poem,  was  closely  related  to  the  idealism 
which  inspired  prayer  and  worship. 

There  was  no  interest  of  Channing's  life 
of  more  vital  concern  to  him  than  the  history, 
the  politics,  and  the  statesmanship  of  America. 
The  State  to  him  was  the  guardian  of  the 
law  and  the  upholder  of  moral  principles. 
Whenever  he  saw  partisan  desire  for  gain 
propose  and  carry  through  schemes  which 
he  felt  were  wrong  in  motive  and  plan,  he 
publicly  stated  his  opinions  in  discourses, 
pamphlets,  and  books.  Many  of  his  most 
important  publications,  therefore,  were  of  a 
political  nature.  They  differ  from  many 
political  writings  of  the  clergy  in  that  they 
are  calm,  reasoned  out  without  excitement, 
full  of  a  spirit  of  conciliation  toward  his 


214      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

opponents,  but  uncompromising  when  deal 
ing  with  their  principles.  The  War  of  1812, 
the  Seminole  War,  the  questions  arising  out 
of  the  Hartford  Convention,  the  annexation 
of  Texas,  and  slavery  in  its  many  aspects, 
all  deeply  stirred  him  and  brought  forth  char 
acteristic  utterances  from  his  pen. 

In  Channing's  attitude  toward  the  War  of 
1812  he  allied  himself,  as  nearly  as  it  was 
possible  for  him  to  become  a  member  of  a 
party,  with  the  Federalists.  He  was  in  poli 
tics,  as  religion,  an  individualist.  Though  he 
feared  the  invasion  of  French  influence  as 
much  as  the  most  ardent  Federalist,  and  re 
garded  the  war  as  unnecessary  and  unjust, 
he  never  for  a  moment  considered  the  possi 
bility  of  a  secession  from  the  Union  because 
other  states  committed  the  nation  to  a  policy 
of  which  he  did  not  approve.  In  a  review  of 
the  "Correspondence  between  John  Quincy 
Adams  and  several  citizens  of  Massachusetts, 
concerning  the  charge  of  a  design  to  dissolve 
the  union  alleged  to  have  existed  in  that 
state,"  he  repelled  the  charge  and  took  occa 
sion  to  define  what  "the  Union"  should  mean 


WILLIAM    ELLERY   CHANNING  215 

to  a  devoted  citizen,  not  neglecting  to  point 
out  the  failures  of  the  Federalists.  Federal 
ism,  he  said,  "  failed  through  despondence. 
Here  was  the  rock  on  which  Federalism  split. 
Too  many  of  its  leading  men  wanted  a  just 
confidence  in  our  free  institutions,  and  in  the 
moral  ability  of  the  people  to  uphold  them." 
In  Channing's  idea  of  "  the  Union"  there  is 
none  of  the  passionate  regard  of  a  later  time. 
There  is  nothing  sacred  about  it  as  there  was 
to  Webster.  The  highest  function  of  the 
federal  institutions  which  bound  the  states 
together  was  merely  to  avert  evil,  the  highest 
political  good,  liberty,  being  negative ;  this 
he  asserted  over  and  over  again.  "We  prize 
our  bond  of  Union,"  he  wrote,  "  as  that  which 
constitutes  us  one  people;  as  preserving 
the  different  states  from  mutual  jealousies 
and  wars,  and  from  separate  alliances  with 
foreign  nations;  as  mitigating  party  spirit; 
in  one  word,  as  perpetuating  our  peace." 
The  General  Government  should  act  as  its 
name  implied,  not  protecting  certain  branches 
of  trade  and  neglecting  others,  and  not  mak 
ing  internal  improvements  a  fountain  of  dis- 


2l6       THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

cord     and     bitterness     through     a     palpable 
favoritism. 

There  was  no  subject  upon  which  Channing 
wrote  more  vigorously  than  slavery.  He  never 
became  an  abolitionist,  partly  because  of  his 
calmness  of  view,  and  partly  because  he  dis 
liked  to  join  with  others  in  associations,  believing 
firmly  as  he  did  in  the  importance  of  individual 
action.  He  rendered,  however,  important  ser 
vice  in  creating  public  sentiment;  and  his 
books  were  read  where  others  were  destroyed. 
The  most  noted  of  his  anti-slavery  writings 
were  the  treatise  simply  called  "  Slavery," 
his  letter  to  James  G.  Birney  on  "The 
Abolitionist,"  the  letter  to  Henry  Clay  "On 
the  Annexation  of  Texas,"  "  Remarks  on  the 
Slavery  Question,"  "Emancipation,"  and  "The 
Duty  of  the  Free  States."  Through  all  these 
different  books  and  letters  and  pamphlets  the 
same  spirit  is  to  be  seen,  the  eagerness  to  point 
out  to  the  slave  owner  and  the  Northern  poli 
tician  and  capitalist,  the  moral  facts  that  were 
involved,  and  how  contrary  the  institution  was 
to  Christian  principles.  In  the  treatise  "  Slav 
ery,"  Channing  really  said  almost  all  that  was 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  2 1/ 

in  his  mind.  The  other  writings  are  simply 
repetitions  and  elaborations  of  these  first  ideas. 
The  book  is  divided  into  eight  chapters,  dealing 
with  such  questions  as  property  rights,  the  evils 
of  slavery,  Scripture  in  relation  to  the  institu 
tion,  the  means  of  removing  slavery,  and  the 
duties  of  the  hour.  As  to  the  contention  that 
the  slaves  are  property  or  as  the  South  Caro 
lina  laws  said,  "  chattels  personal  in  the  hands 
of  their  masters,  and  possessions  to  all  intents 
and  purposes  whatsoever,"  Channing  answered 
by  taking  the  highest  ground :  "  He  cannot  be 
property  in  the  sight  of  God  and  justice  because 
he  is  a  rational,  moral,  immortal  being."  When 
told  that  governments  decide  what  is  property, 
he  exclaimed,  "  What !  is  human  legislation  the 
measure  of  right?  Are  God's  laws  to  be  re 
pealed  by  man's  ?  Can  governments  do  no 
wrong  ?  "  The  evils  of  slavery  were  very  fully 
set  forth  as  destructive  of  intellectual  life  in  the 
slave,  the  ignorance  of  the  slave  being  neces 
sary  to  the  security  of  the  master.  The  domes 
tic  influences  of  the  institution  were  of  the 
worst  type :  "  The  slave's  home  does  not  merit 
the  name.  To  him  it  is  no  sanctuary.  It  is 


2l8      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

open  to  violation,  insult,  outrage.  His  children 
belong  to  another,  are  provided  for  by  another, 
are  disposed  of  by  another.  .  .  .  His  wife, 
son,  and  daughter  may  be  lashed  before  his 
eyes,  and  not  a  finger  must  be  lifted  in  their 
defence."  The  corresponding  evil  influences 
on  the  master's  character  and  his  conception 
of  the  purity  of  the  home  were  unsparingly 
dealt  with,  as  well  as  the  influence  on  politics 
and  on  the  nation.  The  analysis  of  Channing 
was  keen.  He  allowed  no  argument  to  escape 
him,  and  when  he  approached  the  assertion 
that  Scripture  upheld  slavery  he  could  not 
keep  his  intensity  in  check.  "Why  may 
not  Scripture  be  used,"  he  said,  "to  stock  our 
houses  with  wives  as  well  as  with  slaves  ? "  The 
true  spirit  of  Christianity  was  shown  to  be  the 
fulfilment  of  the  law  and  the  introduction  of  a 
life  of  freedom  and  brotherhood. 

On  the  subject  of  the  removal  of  slavery, 
Channing  seems  never  to  have  got  beyond  the 
thought  that  such  removal  must  be  brought 
about  by  the  slave-holding  states  themselves. 
Colonization,  as  well  as  gradual  emancipation 
was  suggested,  but  forcible  interference  by 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  2 19 

the  North  never  became  a  possibility  to  him. 
"What  is  needed,"  he  thought,  "  is  that  the 
slave-holding  states  should  resolve  conscien 
tiously  and  in  good  faith  to  remove  this  greatest 
of  moral  evils  and  wrongs."  Of  the  abolition 
ists  Channing  was  outspoken ;  while  he  felt  they 
were  sincere  he  could  not  help  deprecating  their 
methods,  and  the  perfectly  futile  cry  of  "Im 
mediate  Emancipation."  The  agitation  of  the 
abolitionists  had  done  great  harm  in  strength 
ening  the  sympathies  of  the  free  states  with 
slavery  and  in  alienating  the  South;  "It  made 
converts  of  a  few  individuals,  but  alienated 
multitudes.  Its  influence  at  the  South  has 
been  wholly  evil.  It  has  stirred  up  bitter  pas 
sions  and  a  fierce  fanaticism,  which  has  shut 
every  ear  and  every  heart  against  its  arguments 
and  persuasions."  In  the  letter  to  Birney, 
Channing  deplores  the  physical  violence  used 
against  the  abolitionists,  because  he  believed 
they  should  have  the  right  of  free  speech,  and 
he  spares  no  words  of  condemnation  against 
those  who  selfishly  misrepresent  the  aims  of 
those  seeking  to  free  the  slaves.  The  influ 
ence  of  the  judicious  pleading  of  such  men 


22O      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

as  Charming  did  more  to  educate  the  people 
of  America  in  the  moral  way  of  dealing  with 
the  question  than  the  boisterous  opposition  of 
hot-headed  men  who  were  fond  of  denunciation. 
As  an  important  state  paper  reflecting  the 
sentiment  of  many,  the  letter  to  Henry  Clay 
on  "  The  Annexation  of  Texas  to  the  United 
States  "  ranks  high.  It  is  written  with  dignity 
and  force ;  and  attracted  general  attention  at 
the  time  of  its  publication  in  1837.  The  motive 
for  writing  the  letter  is  fully  expressed  in  the 
words  :  "  Should  Texas  be  annexed  to  our 
country,  I  feel  that  I  could  not  forgive  myself, 
if,  with  my  deep,  solemn  impressions,  I  should 
do  nothing  to  avert  the  evil.  .  .  .  The  annexa 
tion  of  Texas,  under  existing  circumstances, 
would  be  more  than  rashness ;  it  would  be 
madness."  The  arguments  against  annexing 
Texas  are  put  forth  with  rare  skill.  The  crimi 
nality  of  the  revolt  which  severed  the  country 
from  Mexico,  the  unprincipled  spirit  of  land 
speculation  with  the  manufacture  of  land  titles, 
the  resolution  to  throw  Texas  open  to  slave 
holders,  are  all  treated  from  the  highest  ethical 
standpoint.  Though  the  contention  that  "  Texas 


WILLIAM   ELLERY  CHANNING  221 


is  the  first  step  to  Mexico"  was  not  justified, 
yet  the  Mexican  War  showed  the  prophetical 
wisdom  of  the  preacher  in  fearing  bloodshed. 
He  could  not  imagine  that  Mexico  would  be 
a  passive  prey  or  surrender  without  a  struggle. 
The  strongest  argument  found  against  the 
measure  was  that  it  would  perpetuate  slavery, 
and  this  would  have  an  important  bearing  on 
the  existence  of  the  National  Union.  The 
South  by  an  extension  of  territory  would 
acquire  disproportionate  power  and  this  would 
give  new  violence  to  the  agitation  of  the  slavery 
question.  "  Let  slavery  be  systematically  pro 
posed  as  the  policy  of  these  states,  let  it  bind 
them  together  in  efforts  to  establish  political 
power,  and  a  new  feeling  will  burst  forth 
through  the  whole  North.  It  will  be  a  con 
centration  of  moral,  religious,  political,  and 
patriotic  feelings.  The  fire,  now  smothered, 
will  blaze  out."  Channing  in  later  life  foresaw 
the  possibility  of  the  division  of  the  Union,  and 
should  it  be  brought  about  he  could  not  keep 
from  himself  the  disaster  that  would  ensue. 

Though   Channing    recognized    the   dangers 
that  were  ahead  he  never  counselled  force.     In 


222     THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

the  "Duty  of  the  Free  States"  he  expressed 
very  fully  his  opinion  on  this  subject:  "  What 
is  the  duty  of  the  North  in  regard  to  slavery  ? 
On  this  subject  I  will  only  say,  I  recommend  no 
crusade  against  slavery,  no  use  of  physical  or 
legislative  power  for  its  destruction,  no  irruption 
into  the  South  to  tamper  with  the  slave,  or  to 
repeal  or  resist  the  laws.  Our  duties  on  this 
subject  are  plain.  First,  we  must  free  our 
selves,  as  I  have  said,  from  all  constitutional 
or  legal  obligations  to  uphold  slavery.  In  the 
next  place  we  must  give  free  and  strong 
expression  to  our  reprobation  of  slavery.  The 
North  has  but  one  weapon,  moral  force,  the 
utterance  of  moral  judgment,  moral  feeling, 
and  religious  conviction." 

Channing,  by  temperament,  education,  and 
contact  with  the  vigorous  minds  of  his  time, 
was  especially  fitted  for  the  position  he  took 
as  a  social  reformer.  Keenly  alive  to  the 
trend  of  society  in  the  direction  of  an  enlarged 
democracy  he  felt  the  power  that  resided  in 
the  people  when  they  were  trained  in  the  best 
arts  of  living  and  freed  from  the  false  restraints 
that  had  been  put  upon  them  by  the  ruling 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  223 

classes.  He  has  a  place  therefore  among  those 
who,  in  the  early  portion  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  worked  in  the  cause  of  the  laboring 
man,  and  made  possible  in  America  the  bene 
ficial  legislation,  the  numerous  protections  to 
life  and  limb,  the  establishment  of  libraries 
for  the  people,  and  the  general  excellence  of 
the  public  schools.  As  the  Earl  of  Shaftsbury 
in  England  befriended  the  working  classes, 
and  kept  children  of  tender  age  out  of  the 
factories,  alleviating  the  conditions  of  the  in 
sane,  improving  the  treatment  of  prisoners,  so 
in  a  less  extensive,  but  as  earnest  a  way, 
Channing  worked  for  the  same  objects.  Child- 
labor,  American  penal  institutions,  the  educa 
tion  of  the  people,  and  the  uplifting  of  the 
masses  of  the  poor  were  continually  in  his 
mind  ;  and  by  the  use  of  his  pen  and  his  voice 
he  worked  so  strenuously  that  he  has  the 
right  to  stand  among  those  men  of  the  century 
who  have  heard  the  cry  of  the  multitudes;  — 
prophetic  enough  to  see  that  the  advancement 
of  human  society  can  only  come  through  the 
progress  of  the  many  as  they  cast  aside  the 
burdens  and  injustices  of  earlier  times. 


224     THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

One  of  the  first  evils  of  modern  society  he 
attacked  was  war.  He  preached  on  many  occa 
sions  in  favor  of  arbitration  and  against  the 
iniquity  of  settling  disputes  by  the  sword.  His 
discourse  on  "War,"  preached  in  1816,  prepared 
the  way  for  the  formation  of  the  Peace  Society 
of  Massachusetts,  the  parent  of  similar  societies 
in  America.  Dr.  Channing  prepared  one  of  the 
first  memorials  to  Congress  on  the  subject 
of  American  cooperation  with  European  gov 
ernments  in  the  "acknowledgment  of  those 
principles  of  peace  and  charity  on  which  the 
prosperity  of  states  and  the  happiness  of  fami 
lies  and  individuals  are  alike  suspended."  The 
Seminole  War  was  another  opportunity  for  him 
to  express  his  views  on  the  cruelty  and  need- 
lessness  of  war.  In  Channing's  most  noted 
address  on  the  evils  of  war,  he  shows  himself  to 
be  a  careful  observer  of  men  as  well  as  a  stu 
dent  of  history.  After  dealing  with  the  obvious 
miseries  caused  by  armed  conflict  such  as  dis 
ease,  death,  poverty,  and  the  undermining  of 
moral  standards,  he  lays  his  finger  on  the 
causes  that  produce  war  which  he  ranks 
"among  the  most  dreadful  calamities  which 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  225 

fall  on  a  guilty  world.  ...  It  tends  to  multi 
ply  and  perpetuate  itself  without  end.  It  feeds 
and  grows  on  the  blood  which  it  sheds.  The 
most  luxuriant  laurels  grow  from  a  root  nour 
ished  with  blood."  The  causes  of  war  are 
classed  as  the  love  of  excitement,  of  emotion,  and 
of  strong  interest,  the  passion  for  superiority  and 
for  power,  the  admiration  of  the  brilliant  quali 
ties  displayed  on  the  battle-field  —  "war  being 
as  we  first  see  it  decked  with  gay  and  splendid 
trappings" — and  the  early  training  of  the  people 
in  the  sentiments  of  barbarous  ages.  The  line 
is  drawn  skilfully  between  moral  courage  and 
physical  bravery,  the  latter  being  found  in  ani 
mals  and  among  pirates  and  robbers  "whose 
fearlessness  is  generally  proportioned  to  the  in 
sensibility  of  their  consciences."  To  the  argu 
ments  in  favor  of  war,  that  it  kindles  patriotism 
and  sweeps  off  the  idle  and  vicious  members  of 
the  community,  the  answer  is  made,  that  the 
patriotism  cherished  by  war  is  spurious,  a  vice 
not  a  virtue,  for  the  genuine  patriot  knows  that 
the  welfare  of  his  own  country  is  conditioned 
upon  the  general  progress  of  society,  and  that 
"war  commonly  generates  as  many  profligates 
Q 


226     THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

as  it  destroys."  "There  is  another  method,"  he 
urged,  "not  quite  so  summary  as  war,  of  rid 
ding  a  country  of  unprofitable  and  injurious 
citizens,  but  vastly  more  effectual.  ...  I  re 
fer  to  the  exertions,  which  Christians  have  com 
menced,  for  the  reformation  and  improvement 
of  the  ignorant  and  poor,  and  especially  for  the 
instruction  and  moral  culture  of  indigent  chil 
dren."  But  Channing  was  not  an  ardent  disci 
ple  of  the  doctrine  of  Non-Resistance.  "We 
are  indeed  told,"  he  said,  "that  the  language  of 
Scripture  is  '  resist  not  evil.'  But  the  Scriptures 
are  given  to  us  as  reasonable  beings."  In  a 
letter  to  a  friend  he  wrote,  "The  precept  're 
sist  not  evil '  is  plainly  to  be  understood  with 
much  limitation,  for,  were  it  literally  followed, 
without  exception,  by  the  private  citizen  and 
magistrate,  all  government,  domestic  and  civil, 
would  cease  and  society  would  fall  a  prey  to  its 
worst  members."  The  cases  in  which  war  is 
justifiable  are  the  defence  of  one's  country  and 
the  rescue  of  the  oppressed. 

The  lectures  "On  the  Elevation  of  the 
Laboring  Classes,"  "Ministry  for  the  Poor," 
and  "The  Philanthropist,"  indicate  a  deep  sym- 


WILLIAM   ELLERY   CHANNING  22/ 

pathy  with  the  social  problems  that  confront 
thinking  men.  Ideals  of  government  and  the 
duties  of  the  people  are  so  beautifully  set  forth 
that  it  is  no  wonder  the  people  regarded  him  as 
their  friend.  When  Horace  Mann  decided  to 
devote  himself  to  the  large  plans  of  popular 
education  which  he  conceived,  Dr.  Channing 
wrote  to  him  in  most  characteristic  fashion  :  "  I 
understand  that  you  have  given  yourself  to  the 
cause  of  education  in  our  Commonwealth.  I 
rejoice  in  it.  Nothing  could  give  me  greater 
pleasure.  I  have  long  desired  that  some  one 
uniting  all  your  qualifications  should  devote  him 
self  to  this  work.  You  could  not  find  a  nobler 
station.  Government  has  no  nobler  one  to  give. 
You  must  allow  me  to  labor  under  you  accord 
ing  to  my  opportunities." 

Dr.  Channing  through  his  long  and  busy 
career  as  the  minister  of  the  Federal  Street 
Society  in  Boston,  from  1803  until  his  death  in 
1842,  was  an  intellectual  and  moral  leader.  In 
the  midst  of  the  Unitarian  controversy  he  was 
foremost  in  contending  for  freedom  of  thought, 
and  in  the  crises  of  American  life,  he  always 
upheld  what  he  considered  to  be  the  truth,  urg- 


228      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

ing  a  fearless  application  of  Christian  ethics  to 
contemporary  conditions.  He  was,  in  every 
thing  he  engaged  in,  a  pronounced  individualist, 
not  feeling  responsibility  to  any  association  or 
organization,  but  giving  utterance  to  his  own 
ideas,  believing  firmly  in  their  righteousness. 
Whether  he  is  read  much  to-day  matters  not, 
he  gave  an  impulse  to  the  life  about  him,  an 
impetus  to  fearless  thought  and  to  the  freedom 
of  the  human  soul.  He  was  one  of  the  spiritual 
forces  of  his  time,  and  his  watchwords  are  every 
where  incorporated  into  life. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THEODORE   PARKER 

THERE  is  no  man  about  whom  more  diverse 
opinions  have  been  held  than  Theodore  Parker. 
He  was  loved  as  intensely  as  he  was  hated.  To 
certain  of  his  friends  he  was  the  Martin  Luther 
of  the  latest  Protestantism,  and  to  his  enemies 
the  language  did  not  contain  the  words  of  op 
probrium  that  should  have  been  created  for  his 
special  benefit.  In  "  A  Fable  for  Critics,"  Lowell 
thus  apostrophized  him  in  verse,  doing  honor  to 
his  rugged  qualities  :  — 

"There  he  stands,  looking  more  like  a  ploughman  than 

priest, 

If  not  dreadfully  awkward,  not  graceful  at  least, 
His  gestures  all  downright  and  same,  if  you  will, 
As  of  brown-fisted  Hobnail  in  hoeing  a  drill; 
But  his  periods  fall  on  you,  stroke  after  stroke, 
Like  the  blows  of  a  lumberer  felling  an  oak, 
You  forget  the  man  wholly,  you're  thankful  to  meet 
With  a  preacher  who  smacks  of  the  field  and  the  street, 
And  to  hear,  you're  not  over-particular  whence, 
Almost  Taylor's  profusion,  quite  Latimer's  sense." 
229 


230     THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

To  Emerson  he  was  "a  son  of  the  soil, 
charged  with  the  energy  of  New  England ; 
strong,  eager,  inquisitive  of  knowledge ;  of  a 
diligence  that  never  tired ;  of  a  haughty  inde 
pendence,  yet  the  gentlest  of  companions." 
Yet  in  Boston  he  was  cut  on  the  street  by  his 
old  friends,  refused  admission  into  the  pulpits 
of  his  brother  ministers,  and  held  up  to  public 
meetings  as  a  fit  subject  for  prayer,  whom  if 
the  Lord  would  not  save,  He  might  remove. 
"O  Lord  if  this  man  is  a  subject  of  grace," 
urged  his  opponents,  "convert  him  and  bring 
him  into  the  kingdom  of  thy  dear  Son !  But  if 
he  is  beyond  the  reach  of  the  saving  influence 
of  the  gospel,  remove  him  out  of  the  way,  and 
let  his  influence  die  with  him."  This  was 
milder  than  the  prayer  that  a  hook  might  be 
put  into  his  jaws  so  that  his  tongue  might  be 
kept  quiet. 

This  man,  who  caused  a  deal  of  commotion 
in  the  religious  and  political  world  of  his  day, 
between  the  delivery  of  his  first  broadside  at 
the  ordination  of  Mr.  Charles  C.  Shackford  at 
South  Boston,  on  May  19,  1841,  and  his  letter 
on  the  John  Brown  raid,  written  in  Florence  in 


THEODORE   PARKER  231 

1860,  just  before  the  soil  of  Italy  was  laid  upon 
his  grave,  was  the  possessor  of  so  many 
varied  characteristics,  and  active  in  such  differ 
ent  departments  of  human  affairs  with  an  utter 
disregard  of  present  consequences,  that  it  was 
natural  he  should  have  excited  extreme 
emotions  wherever  he  went.  He  was  student, 
theologian,  philosopher,  preacher,  reformer, 
publicist,  orator,  writer  of  books  and  always 
the  speaker  of  his  own  mind  ;  managing  gen 
erally  to  get  on  the  unpopular  side,  selected 
perhaps,  because  of  its  small  present  chances, 
in  hope  of  larger  chances  at  another  time ;  with 
no  regard  for  traditions  or  any  institutions  organ 
ized  by  men ;  acting  with  the  force  of  a  new 
conviction  wherever  his  own  reason  or  illumina 
tion  led  the  way.  He  was  an  uncomfortable 
neighbor,  but  an  inflexible  adherent,  provided 
you  agreed  with  him;  he  disliked  dogma  and 
creed,  but  no  man  had  more  uncompromising 
dogma  than  his  own  opinions,  nor  a  more  iron- 
bound  creed  than  the  personal  beliefs  which  he 
desired  to  force  upon  mankind.  Yet  he  had 
a  sweet  side  to  his  character.  His  supporters 
and  friends  loved  him,  as  he  them ;  and  children 


232      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

and  flowers  were  a  great  delight  to  him;  he 
sometimes  tried  his  hand  at  verse-making,  and 
shed  tears  when  an  act  of  kindness  was  done  to 
him. 

Theodore  Parker  was  a  farmer's  lad  born  in 
Lexington,  August  24,  1810,  not  so  many  years 
after  his  grandfather  Captain  Parker  led  the 
little  band  of  patriots  on  the  village  green.  In 
youth  he  could  plough  the  field  as  well  as  any, 
but  reserved  for  himself  certain  hours  for  study, 
and  almost  unexpectedly  slipped  into  college. 
His  father  missed  him  one  day,  and  wondering 
where  he  had  gone  was  astonished  when  his 
son  returned  at  midnight,  explaining  his  absence 
by  saying,  "  Father,  I  entered  Harvard  College 
to-day."  His  greatest  preparation  for  life  was 
the  sturdy  religion  of  his  father  and  the  teach 
ing  of  his  mother  on  the  subject  of  righteous 
ness  and  conscience. 

His  college  and  divinity  course  were  marked 
from  others  only  by  a  greater  devotion  to  study, 
the  formation  of  habits  of  reading  that  lasted 
him  through  life,  and  a  willingness  to  seek  truth 
in  its  furthest  hiding-place.  Books  were  always 
his  passion.  He  collected  them  by  the  thou- 


THEODORE  PARKER  233 

sand,  and  read  them,  too,  on  every  possible 
subject,  thus  furnishing  himself  with  facts,  sta 
tistics,  arguments,  illustrations,  and  whatever 
else  was  needed  to  clear  his  own  thought  and 
enable  him  to  present  the  truth  as  he  held  it 
for  the  acceptance  of  others.  When  lecturing 
throughout  the  country  it  was  a  familiar  sight 
to  see  him  with  a  carpet-bag  filled  with  books, 
which  he  read  on  the  train  and  in  his  hotel. 
His  desire  for  accuracy  of  statement  led  him  to 
write  for  information  at  first  hand  from  mem 
bers  of  Congress  and  authors  of  foreign  note. 
Whatever  he  wrote  was  the  result  of  hard  work 
and  careful  preparation.  The  enormous  fer 
tility  of  his  pen  in  letters,  journals,  reviews,  ad 
dresses,  sermons,  and  books,  never  tempted  him 
into  vague  statement  of  fact,  or  the  careless  use 
of  other  men's  opinions.  He  verified  what  he 
used,  going  however  to  the  sources  that  were 
not  open  to  every  one.  The  study  that  exer 
cised  the  dominant  influence  on  his  life  was 
German.  Through  it  as  a  medium  he  was 
brought  into  contact  with  the  theology  and 
philosophy  of  Germany.  These  both  found  a 
soil  prepared  for  them,  and  grew  up  with  pro- 


234      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

fusion  on  American  soil.  Kant,  Goethe,  Schlei- 
ermacher,  De  Wette,  and  Baur,  with  others  of 
the  Tubingen  School  opened  his  eyes  to  the 
new  possibilities  of  Biblical  interpretation ;  and 
he  was  not  slow  in  adopting  the  novel  ideas. 

In  consequence  of  this  assimilation  of  Ger 
man  thought,  the  Unitarianism  into  which  he 
had  been  born  began  to  appear  too  narrow.  It 
had  been  a  movement  for  breadth  and  freedom 
of  thought,  but  the  Bible  was  its  source  of 
authority.  When  Unitarianism  differed  from 
Orthodoxy,  it  was  a  matter  of  the  interpreta 
tion  of  texts ;  the  older  doctrines  were  not  be 
lieved  because  the  Bible  taught  otherwise.  The 
Trinity  as  well  as  the  Atonement  or  Total  De 
pravity  were  denied  because  it  was  contended 
they  were  not  Scriptural.  To  Parker,  influ 
enced  by  the  Germans,  the  authority  of  the 
Bible  was  little  above  the  authority  of  any 
other  historical  book.  He  was  willing  to  dis 
card  almost  the  whole  of  it ;  and  instead  of 
appealing  to  the  book  for  his  religious  ideas, 
he  turned  to  the  soul  of  man  with  its  intui 
tions  and  direct  communication  with  Deity.  It 
was  very  early  in  his  ministry  that  he  wrote, 


THEODORE   PARKER  235 

"  The  Orthodox  place  the  Bible  above  the  soul ; 
we  the  soul  above  the  Bible."  Thus  Christi 
anity  became  to  him  simply  one  of  the  religions 
of  the  world  with  its  errors  of  opinion  and  doc 
trine  as  marked  as  that  of  any  other  system. 
The  founder  of  the  religion  was  a  righteous 
man  who,  however,  did  not  even  exhaust  the 
possibilities  of  humanity. 

These  changes  in  Parker's  intellectual  atti 
tude  toward  the  current  theology  of  his  friends 
and  ministerial  companions  came  slowly  at  first. 
He  tried  to  resist  them,  but  after  his  ordination 
in  1837,  and  settlement  as  parish  minister  in 
West  Roxbury,  he  grew  bolder  in  his  investiga 
tions,  and  less  guarded  in  his  public  utterances. 
His  parish  was  a  rural  one,  containing  at  most 
about  sixty  families.  The  duties  were  such  that 
he  had  ample  time  to  devote  to  research.  Occa 
sionally  he  preached  in  Boston,  exchanging  with 
some  neighboring  minister.  In  the  early  days 
of  his  pastorate  his  preaching  was  simple 
enough.  Few  could  take  exception  to  it. 

Soon  his  preaching  became  more  aggressive, 
and  his  heresies  were  noised  abroad.  He  began 
to  be  looked  upon  with  suspicion.  Suspicion 


236      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

grew  into  open  hostility  when  he  delivered  his 
celebrated  discourse  at  the  ordination  of  Mr. 
Shackford  in  1841  on  "The  Transient  and  Per 
manent  in  Christianity."  The  sermon  was  loose 
in  structure,  with  many  faults  of  style,  rhetori 
cal  and  redundant,  but  it  had  in  it  the  fearless 
and  direct  statement  of  opinion  for  which  he 
became  renowned. 

The  lectures  delivered  in  Boston  in  1841-1842, 
afterward  collected  and  published  in  his  most 
popular  book  under  the  title,  "  A  Discourse  of 
Matters  Pertaining  to  Religion,"  gained  the  ill- 
will  of  most  of  the  Unitarian  clergy  of  Boston. 
To  exchange  pulpits  with  Parker  was  looked 
upon  as  a  disgrace.  He  was  asked  to  withdraw 
from  the  Boston  Ministerial  Association.  This 
he  refused  to  do,  replying  that  they  might 
expel  him  if  they  so  desired.  Rev.  John  Turner 
Sargent  of  Suffolk  Street  Chapel  in  Boston,  in 
November,  1844,  had  the  temerity  to  exchange 
with  the  arch-heretic,  and  he  was  forced  to 
resign  his  charge.  Unitarianism  which  began 
by  the  assertion  of  independence  and  freedom 
of  thought  was  startled  to  see  its  contentions 
accepted  so  heartily  and  carried  to  the  logical 


THEODORE   PARKER  237 

results  of  unrestrained  speculation  and  speech. 
Parker's  training  had  accustomed  him  to  free 
dom  in  handling  dogma ;  and  he  was  prepared 
to  go  far  afield  in  his  thought,  and  turn  upon 
religion  the  light  from  every  possible  source. 
Destructive  criticism  had  found  him  an  ardent 
disciple,  and  he  was  ready  to  advance  the 
boundaries  of  liberal  theology ;  but  those  who 
guarded  the  outposts  were  unwilling  to  move, 
and  he  learned  that  he  must  stand  alone,  not 
without  sorrow  for  the  separation  from  his 
friends,  yet  with  the  knowledge  of  the  satis 
faction  that  would  come  from  the  approval  of 
his  conscience. 

The  book  that  caused  most  of  the  trouble, 
"A  Discourse  of  Matters  Pertaining  to  Re 
ligion,"  was  a  treatise  which  contained  most 
of  his  religious  and  philosophical  ideas,  after 
ward  set  forth  in  other  volumes:  "Ten  Ser 
mons  of  Religion,"  and  "  Sermons  of  Theism, 
Atheism,  and  the  Popular  Theology."  The 
first-named  book  was  popular  in  form,  more 
for  the  general  reader  than  the  scholar,  put 
ting  in  the  hands  of  those  of  ordinary  intelli 
gence  a  vigorous  and  clear  exposition  of  the 


238      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

advanced  ideas  of  the  German  thinkers.  It 
attracted  attention  because  it  was  destructive, 
and  in  no  way  softened  the  force  of  a  blow. 
The  main  subject  of  the  book  was  a  discus 
sion  of  the  relation  of  the  religious  element, 
of  the  human  sentiment  of  religion,  to  God, 
to  Jesus,  to  the  Bible,  and  the  Church.  This 
gave  every  chance  to  bring  forward  whatever 
positive  ideas  he  had  and  to  deal  with  the 
important  questions  of  religion.  Throughout 
the  philosophical  part  it  is  easy  to  discern  the 
influence  of  Schleiermacher  in  his  conception 
of  the  religious  sentiment  as  being  based  on 
a  feeling  of  dependence  that  man  has  natu 
rally  and  universally,  —  the  source  of  Fetich- 
ism,  and  Polytheism,  as  well  as  of  Monotheism. 
Religion  in  its  essence  is  voluntary  obedience 
to  the  law  of  the  universe,  "inward  and  out 
ward  obedience  to  that  law  he  has  written  on 
our  nature,  revealed  in  various  ways  —  through 
Instinct,  Reason,  Conscience,  and  the  Religious 
emotions."  The  effect  of  the  Intuitional  School 
of  Philosophy  is  shown  in  the  explanation  of 
the  idea  of  God's  existence  as  an  "  Intuition 
of  Reason."  Thus  defining  man's  relation  to 


THEODORE  PARKER  239 

Deity  as  the  recipient  of  revelation  in  his  own 
person  through  the  channels  of  natural  in 
stincts,  feeling,  and  emotion,  it  is  only  a  step 
for  one  to  become  an  absolute  individualist 
and  to  stand  aloof  from  institutions,  sacred 
books,  sacred  persons,  forms  of  any  kind,  or 
even  sacraments,  and  be  sufficient  unto  oneself, 
relying  upon  personal  inspiration  rather  than 
upon  any  assistance  from  a  church  or  an 
organization  of  religion.  It  was  this  utter  dis 
regard  for  the  institution  that  made  him  ridi 
cule  the  church  and  the  ministers,  and  even 
the  sacraments  that  men  held  dear.  In 
speaking  once  of  the  elements  used  at  the 
celebration  of  the  Holy  Communion  he  rather 
unnecessarily  referred  to  them  as  "  grocer's 
wine  and  baker's  bread,"  and  thought  that  a 
good  way  of  observing  the  sacrament  would 
be  "to  have  a  meeting  in  the  evening  for  reli 
gious  conversation  and  prayer  (if  needful)  at 
private  houses;  and  bread  and  wine  might 
form  part  of  the  entertainment."  The  best 
friends  of  Parker  could  not  always  commend 
his  good  taste  or  judgment.  He  could  make 
himself  a  very  offensive  opponent.  When 


240      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Emerson  resigned  his  parish  because  he  had 
become  convinced  of  the  uselessness  of  ad 
ministering  the  Lord's  Supper  he  was  not 
guilty  in  his  farewell  sermon  of  offending 
against  the  canons  of  considerate  judgment. 
Parker,  however,  was  so  earnest  in  putting 
down  the  errors  of  mankind  that  he  had  no 
time  to  consider  a  bruised  feeling.  He  was 
one  of  those  who  prided  himself  on  his  ability 
to  strike  out  from  the  shoulder,  and  he  did 
not  care  much  whom  he  hit.  His  sarcasm, 
ridicule,  scorn,  and  invective  were  weapons 
kept  well  burnished,  and  they  flashed  with 
such  rapidity  that  his  opponents  were  some 
times  stunned. 

Martineau  reviewing  one  of  Parker's  books, 
remarks  that  "  his  convictions  are  rather  a  series 
of  noble  fragments  waiting  adjustment  by  ma- 
turer  toil  than  a  compact  and  finished  structure." 
Parker  never  had  a  finished  structure,  because, 
for  one  reason,  he  was  the  child  of  many  impres 
sions.  He  absorbed  from  many  sources,  and 
in  a  partial  measure  only  assimilated  what  he 
received.  It  is  easy  to  trace  the  direct  influence 
upon  him  of  the  books  he  was  reading,  and  the 


THEODORE  PARKER  241 

men  who  were  his  companions.  His  association 
with  the  little  group  of  Transcendentalists  who 
met  at  the  Tremont  House,  Boston,  for  social 
intercourse  and  discussion  was  one  of  the  great 
est  factors  in  his  development.  There  he 
learned  to  know  intimately  Emerson,  who  became 
his  philosophic  guide  in  the  Transcendental 
scheme;  George  Ripley,  the  earnest  reformer 
and  literary  man  who  organized  Brook  Farm ; 
William  Henry  Channing,  whom  Parker  referred 
to  as  "  a  most  delightful  man,  full  of  the  right 
spirit ;  a  little  diseased  in  the  region  of  conscious 
ness,  but  otherwise  of  most  remarkable  beauty 
of  character  " ;  Margaret  Fuller,  whom  he  con 
sidered  a  critic,  not  a  creator  or  seer,  but  "a 
prodigious  woman,  though  she  puts  herself 
upon  her  genius  rather  too  much  "  ;  and  Alcott, 
Hedge,  and  the  others.  Parker  was  deeply  inter 
ested  in  all  their  plans  ;  and  when  George  Ripley 
resigned  his  ministry  to  establish  the  Utopian 
scheme  of  Brook  Farm,  the  colony  settled  very 
near  him  in  West  Roxbury.  Though  he  never 
joined  the  enterprise  he  became  in  a  sense  its 
father  confessor,  was  a  constant  visitor,  and  con 
tributed  articles  of  importance  to  The  Dial ; 


242       THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

but  his  sense  of  humor  did  not  always  make 
him  take  the  new  movement  seriously,  and  his 
practical  common-sense  probably  saved  him 
from  being  involved  in  the  failure  that  was  sure 
to  come.  Speaking  of  The  Dial,  he  wrote  : 

"  If  I  were  going  to  do  the  thing  in  paint,  it 
should  be  thus :  I  would  represent  a  body  of 
minute  philosophers,  men  and  maidens,  ele 
gantly  dressed,  bearing  a  banner  inscribed  with 
The  Dial.  A  baby  and  a  pap-spoon  and  a 
cradle  should  be  the  accompaniment  thereof. 
The  whole  body  should  have  'rings  on  their 
fingers,  and  bells  on  their  toes'  and  go  'mincing 
as  they  walk '  led  by  a  body  of  fiddlers,  with 
Scott's  Claude  Halcro  '  playing  the  first  violin 
and  repeating  new  poetry.' ' 

He  used  the  pages  of  The  Dial,  however, 
for  a  very  caustic  piece  of  work  when  he 
reviewed  the  proceedings  of  the  council  called 
to  adjust  the  relations  between  Rev.  John  Pier- 
pont  and  the  Hollis  Street  Society.  Pierpont 
had  preached  against  the  evils  of  intemperance, 
condemning  those  who  manufactured  liquor. 
His  parishioners  were  disturbed  by  this  out 
burst  when  they  were  enjoying  their  wines  and 


THEODORE   PARKER  243 

making  money  by  sales  of  rum.  Pierpont  had 
to  go,  and  Parker,  feeling  the  insecurity  of  his 
own  position,  had  a  sympathy  for  him  which 
found  its  way  into  the  pages  of  The  Dial, 
soothing  the  soul  of  the  unfortunate  minister  by 
calling  the  members  of  the  council  a  set  of 
hypocrites  and  double-dealers,  and  the  paper 
they  put  forth  a  "Jesuitical  Document."  In 
lighter  vein  was  his  article  on  "  A  Bumblebee's 
Thoughts  on  the  Plan  and  Purpose  of  the  Uni 
verse,"  in  which  he  caricatured  a  meeting  of 
learned  scientists,  who  assumed  to  know  all  the 
mysteries  of  nature.  "  There  is  consciousness 
below  us,"  said  the  chief  Bumblebee,  "though 
dim  and  feeble.  But  self-consciousness  is  our 
glorious  monopoly !  It  is  only  the  Bumblebee 
that  can  lay  his  feeler  on  his  proboscis  and  say, 
"I am  a  ME." 

After  the  failure  of  The  Dial,  which  con 
tained  within  its  pages  some  of  the  most 
remarkable  bits  of  American  literature,  Parker's 
only  other  connection  with  periodical  literature 
was  his  founding  and  coeditorship  with  Emer 
son  and  J.  E.  Cabot  of  The  Massachusetts 
Quarterly  Review,  which  ran  a  troubled  but 


244      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

brilliant  career  of  about  three  years.  Serious 
and  timely  articles  from  his  pen  appeared  in 
many  of  the  numbers,  together  with  articles  of 
unusual  merit  by  the  leading  literary  men  of  the 
day.  A  careful  estimate  of  Emerson's  writings, 
savage  reviews  of  Prescott's  histories,  a  bio 
graphical  paper  on  John  Quincy  Adams,  and  a 
strong  article  on  "The  Political  Distinction  of 
America,"  were  among  his  best  contributions. 
Both  The  Dial  and  The  Quarterly  were 
valuable  in  giving  an  opportunity  for  public 
expression  to  the  brilliant  set  of  men  who,  hav 
ing  entered  the  Unitarian  ministry,  felt  com 
pelled  to  withdraw  and  devote  themselves  to 
other  pursuits.  In  many  cases,  what  the 
church  lost,  the  world  gained :  and  the  move 
ment  for  free  and  unrestrained  thought  did  not 
end  in  a  new  Unitarianism,  but  in  a  literary 
self-expression,  adding  richness  to  American 
letters.  Emerson,  Ripley,  William  Henry 
Channing,  and  Pierpont,  all  began  as  clergymen, 
but  the  world  of  action  and  letters  was  too 
strong  and  drew  them  away  from  the  teachings 
of  a  religion  which  ceased  to  hold  them  with 
any  ties  of  the  institution ;  and  preaching  by 


THEODORE   PARKER  245 

the  use  of  the  pen  seemed  a  more  important 
task  than  the  use  of  the  voice  in  the  pulpit. 
Emerson  retired  to  Concord  and  wrote  his 
essays,  books,  and  poems;  Ripley,  after  the 
failure  of  Brook  Farm,  went  to  New  York  and 
made  The  Tribune  a  daily  paper  of  literary 
power;  Channing  became  an  ardent  reformer, 
both  in  America  and  England,  contributing  to 
literature  many  books,  among  them  the  transla 
tion  of  Jouffroy's,  "Introduction  to  Ethics"; 
and  Pierpont,  after  serving  as  a  chaplain  in  the 
Civil  War,  resided  in  Washington  as  a  clerk, 
having,  however,  published  his  book  of  verse 
"  Airs  of  Palestine."  Parker  would  have  fol 
lowed  the  example  of  these  men  if  he  had  been 
shut  into  the  small  compass  of  the  parish  in 
West  Roxbury.  No  one  would  give  him  an 
opportunity  to  be  heard  in  Boston ;  and  he  felt 
that  his  life  was  not  reaching  out  as  it  should. 
A  year  abroad,  in  1844,  only  served  to  estab 
lish  him  more  firmly  in  his  intellectual  attitude. 
He  had  met  Carlyle  and  Martineau  in  England, 
and,  in  Germany  heard  Tholuck  lecture,  visited 
De  Wette  at  Bale,  met  Baur  and  Ewald.  When 
he  returned  to  Boston  the  conflict  with  the 


246     THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

churches  was  renewed,  and  it  was  made  impos 
sible  for  him  even  to  deliver  "the  great  and 
Thursday  Lecture."  It  was  then  that  his  with 
drawal  from  the  pulpit  might  have  been  made, 
and  probably  would  have  been  made  had  not 
some  gentlemen  met  together  and  resolved,  on 

January  22,  1845,  " That  the  Rev'  Theodore 
Parker  shall  have  a  chance  to  be  heard  in 

Boston." 

The  chance  that  was  needed  to  develop 
Parker  to  the  utmost  had  at  last  arrived.  He 
was  henceforth  to  be  a  power  in  Boston,  through 
out  New  England  and  America.  His  energy 
and  boldness,  together  with  his  immense  knowl 
edge  of  facts  and  his  convictions,  were  to  be  at 
the  service  of  an  ever  increasing  number  of 
sympathizers. 

From  the  platform  of  the  Melodeon,  and 
later  of  Music  Hall,  to  which  he  removed 
March  21,  1852,  he  preached  his  burning 
words;  clear,  forcible,  sometimes  restrained  in 
their  vigor,  at  other  times  as  regardless  of 
consequences  as  a  conflagration. 

As  a  preacher  he  generally  read  from  a 
manuscript,  having  few  gestures,  the  most 


THEODORE   PARKER  247 

characteristic  being  the  raising  and  falling  of 
his  hand.  His  voice  was  not  musical,  but  his 
eyes  were  searching,  glowing  with  intensity 
when  he  was  intent  upon  his  subject,  though 
their  full  effect  was  hindered  by  the  glasses  he 
wore.  He  held  his  audience  by  the  earnestness 
of  his  thought.  A  plain  man  who  heard  him 
once  asked,  "  Is  that  Theodore  Parker  ?  You 
told  me  he  was  a  remarkable  man ;  but  I 
understood  every  word  he  said."  His  language 
was  simple  and  his  illustrations  direct,  his  style 
sometimes  being  epigrammatic  and  occasionally 
relieved  by  poetical  passages  that  in  some 
cases  could  hardly  escape  being  called  fine 
writing.  He  cared  more  for  what  he  said  than 
for  the  way  in  which  he  said  it.  He  was  quick 
to  use  any  incident  occurring  during  the  service 
to  enforce  his  lesson.  Once,  describing  obsta 
cles,  he  said,  "  Before  such  a  man  all  obstacles 
will"  —  at  this  moment  there  was  a  snow-slide 
on  the  roof — "slide  away  like  the  ice  from 
the  slated  roof."  It  was  remembered  that, 
when  he  was  praying,  a  dog  having  strayed 
into  the  hall  set  up  a  howl ;  he  continued, 
undisturbed,  "We  thank  Thee,  O  Father  of 


248     THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

all,  who  hast  made  even  the  humblest  dumb 
creature  to  praise  Thee  after  its  own  way." 
Adverse  criticism  did  not  worry  him.  "  If 
a  man  called  that  a  '  rowdy  speech/  it  was 
because  he  had  the  soul  of  a  rowdy,"  he  re 
torted,  "  and  if  fifty  men  said  so,  it  was  because 
there  were  fifty  so  ensouled." 

The  themes  that  he  handled  in  the  pulpit 
were  by  no  means  confined  to  theological  dis 
cussion.  After  a  time  theology  became  inci 
dental  only.  He  took  up  the  questions  of  the 
day,  social  and  political,  with  such  frequency 
that  his  weekly  sermon  became  the  manifesto 
of  the  reformer  and  the  publicist  and  at  times 
the  politician.  These  sermons,  printed  and 
circulated  by  the  thousands,  were  his  chief 
source  of  power ;  and  the  questions  of  labor 
and  capital,  the  rights  of  the  workingmen 
and  the  selfishness  of  corporations  and 
the  control  of  the  liquor  interest  were  vital 
problems  that  he  attacked.  When  he  dealt 
with  war,  a  favorite  topic  with  reformers,  he 
proved  himself  not  to  be  a  non-resistant.  His 
nature  was  too  fiery.  He  would  have  been 
willing  to  lead  a  regiment,  playing  his  part, 


THEODORE   PARKER  249 

as  he  undoubtedly  did,  in  the  Kansas  War, 
and  aiding  more  than  is  now  known  in  John 
Brown's  raid  at  Harper's  Ferry.  An  eye  to 
detect  wrong  and  a  mind  ready  to  lend  its 
best  powers  to  support  the  cause  of  the  weak, 
and  a  hand  eager  to  battle  against  oppression 
were  the  characteristics  of  this  reformer,  who 
did  not  always  neglect  the  sweetness  of  life 
that  lies  behind  the  sturdy  blow  and  gives  a 
kind  of  delicacy  to  the  roughest  usage.  His 
strength  was  often  reinforced  by  a  strain  of 
verse  which  sang  its  way  into  the  private 
journal  and  helped  to  lighten  the  load  he  was 
carrying. 

"  Give  me  the  power  to  labor  for  mankind ; 
Make  me  the  mouth  of  such  as  cannot  speak ; 
Eyes  let  me  be  to  groping  men  and  blind ; 
A  conscience  to  the  base ;  and  to  the  weak 
Let  me  be  hands  and  feet ;  and  to  the  foolish,  mind." 

The  abolition  of  slavery  soon  occupied  more 
of  Parker's  thought  than  theology.  It  became 
to  him  a  living  issue  of  theology,  —  a  practical 
application  of  his  religion.  He  judged  men 
and  measures  solely  by  their  stand  on  the  slav 
ery  question  in  its  many  phases.  The  Free- 


250      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Soil  movement  gained  his  hearty  support;  and 
his  Sunday  orations,  notably  the  one  on  the 
death  of  Zachary  Taylor,  were  occupied  with 
this  question.  He  never  could  forget  that 
Taylor  was  a  slave-holder.  His  greatest  out 
burst,  however,  was  when  the  Fugitive  Slave 
Bill  was  passed  and  Daniel  Webster  delivered 
his  famous  speech  in  its  favor  on  March  7, 
1850.  He  condemned  Webster's  speech  at 
a  meeting  of  citizens  in  Faneuil  Hall,  March 
25,  1850,  and  urged  that  such  a  law  should  be 
broken  because  it  was  the  unrighteous  law  of 
selfish  men.  The  higher  law  of  God  must  be 
obeyed,  and  as  the  Stamp  Act  was  repudiated 
by  New  England,  so  this  act  should  be  dis 
obeyed  by  Christian  men. 

This  position  was  taken  with  great  violence 
in  his  famous  speech  on  Daniel  Webster  just 
after  the  statesman's  death.  This  oration,  de 
livered  in  October,  1852,  was  in  many  respects 
his  most  elaborate  effort.  With  an  attempt  at 
fairness  he  commended  him  as  one  of  the  great 
est  men  of  America,  but  was  forced  to  confess 
that  the  mighty  had  fallen,  that  Webster  had 
sold  himself  to  the  South,  hoping  to  gain  by 


THEODORE   PARKER  2$ I 

his  compromise  the  presidential  nomination, 
and  thus  became  the  assassin  of  liberty.  No 
better  statement  of  the  abolitionist  opinion  of 
Webster  can  be  found.  Webster's  contention 
that  the  Union  was  in  danger  and  that  the  South 
would  secede  was  laughed  at.  The  abolition 
ists  felt  no  danger  from  this  source. 

Whether  one  agrees  or  not  with  Webster's 
speech,  there  is  no  denying  that  he  was  one 
of  the  first  to  see  the  great  danger  of  civil  war. 
While  others  were  blind  to  the  dangers,  and 
played  with  fire  as  children,  he  worked  to  extin 
guish  the  flames  that  threatened  to  burn  up 
Constitution,  Union,  and  the  future  prosperity 
of  America.  The  sober  historian  will  hardly 
accept  Parker's  description  of  Webster  as  set 
ting  forth  the  truth  about  him  in  all  respects, 
or  representing  the  final  verdict  of  his  country 
men.  On  the  other  hand  Parker  was  one  of 
those  determined  and  conscientious  men  who 
rendered  a  service  that  we  cannot  calculate 
in  forcing  the  moral  issue  to  the  front,  and 
who  never  could  be  silenced.  In  every  address 
and  public  utterance  he  disentangled  from  the 
current  political  issues  the  one  great  moral 


252      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

issue  that  was  at  the  basis  of  them  all,  and 
forced  it  on  popular  attention. 

Those  of  the  people,  certain  of  the  clergy 
among  them,  who  upheld  slavery  as  just  and 
even  Scriptural,  received  no  quarter.  The 
colleges  which  held  aloof  from  the  discus 
sion  were  impaled  on  the  sharp  edges  of 
rhetoric.  The  excited  minister,  who,  in  a 
moment  of  partisan  ecstasy  had  said  that 
he  would  turn  his  own  mother  from  his 
door  if  she  were  a  fugitive  slave  rather  than 
break  the  law,  never  heard  the  end  of  it, 
and  those  who  defended  the  "  peculiar  in 
stitution  "  of  the  South  on  Biblical  grounds 
were  held  up  to  scorn.  To  a  Southern  cor 
respondent  who  urged  the  curse  of  Ham 
in  extenuation  of  slavery,  Parker  said,  "  Dear 
sir,  Christianity  does  not  consist  in  believ 
ing  stories  in  the  Old  Testament  about 
Noah's  curse,  and  all  that,  but  in  loving  your 
brother  as  yourself,  and  God  with  your  whole 
heart." 

Parker's  advice  to  others  he  followed  himself. 
When  the  fugitive  slaves  were  sought  for  in 
Boston,  and  two  of  his  parishioners,  William 


THEODORE   PARKER  253 

and  Ellen  Craft,  were  in  danger  of  being  taken 
back  to  slavery  by  a  former  owner,  he  helped 
in  their  escape,  collecting  money  enough  to 
send  them  to  England.  Parker  was  president 
of  the  Vigilance  Committee  formed  in  Bos 
ton  for  the  purpose  of  warning  the  slaves, 
and  aiding  in  their  protection  and  escape. 
He  wrote  a  poster  describing  the  slave-hunt 
ers  in  thrilling  language,  warning  the  city 
against  them.  Then  with  a  company  of  gen 
tlemen  he  interviewed  the  slave-hunters,  repre 
senting  to  them  the  hopelessness  of  their 
undertaking,  and  the  indignation  of  the  city 
at  their  errand.  They  left  at  once.  William 
and  Ellen  Craft  were  married  by  Parker 
before  they  set  sail  for  England,  committed  to 
the  charge  of  James  Martineau.  In  an  open 
letter  to  President  Millard  Fillmore  he  gave  an 
account  of  the  marriage  ceremony,  stating 
his  own  determination  to  break  the  law  if  it 
was  necessary  to  protect  his  brethren  who 
had  been  slaves :  "  William  Craft  and  Ellen 
were  parishioners  of  mine.  They  have  been 
at  my  house.  I  married  them  a  fortnight 
ago  this  day;  after  the  ceremony  I  put  a 


254      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Bible  and  then  a  sword  into  William's  hands, 
and  told  him  the  use  of  each." 

The  Vigilance  Committee  was  kept  wide 
awake  when  the  fugitive  Shadrach  was  seized 
by  the  United  States  officers  on  February  15, 
1851.  Headed  by  a  member  of  the  com 
mittee,  a  crowd  pushed  into  the  room  where 
the  slave  was  confined  and  rescued  him,  hur 
rying  him  off  to  Canada.  Parker  wrote  in 
his  diary,  "  I  think  it's  the  most  noble  deed 
done  in  Boston  since  the  destruction  of  the 
tea  in  1773.  I  thank  God  for  it"  The  case 
of  Thomas  Sims  caused  even  greater  excite 
ment,  because  he  was  legally  given  into  the 
hands  of  the  slave-owner  and  transported  to 
South  Carolina.  Parker  bore  his  testimony 
against  the  inhuman  act  at  the  time,  and 
preached  his  famous  discourse  on  "  The  Bos 
ton  Kidnapping"  before  the  Vigilance  Com 
mittee  "to  commemorate  the  Rendition  of 
Thomas  Sims,  delivered  on  the  first  anniver 
sary  thereof,  April  12,  1852."  He  did  not 
hesitate  to  tell  the  truth  about  the  Boston 
sympathizers  with  the  return  of  the  fugitive 
slaves :  "  Boston  capitalists  do  not  hesitate 


THEODORE   PARKER  255 

to  own  Southern  plantations,  and  buy  and 
sell  men;  Boston  merchants  do  not  scruple 
to  let  their  ships  for  the  domestic  slave-trade, 
and  carry  the  child  from  his  mother  in  Balti 
more  to  sell  him  to  a  planter  in  Louisiana 
or  Alabama;  some  of  them  glory  in  kid 
napping  their  fellow-citizens  in  Boston.  Most 
of  the  slave-ships  in  the  Atlantic  are  com 
manded  by  New  England  men.  A  few  years 
ago  one  was  seized  by  the  British  Govern 
ment  near  Africa,  'full  of  slaves';  it  was  owned 
in  Boston,  had  a  'clearance'  from  our  har 
bor,  and  left  its  name  on  the  books  of  the 
insurance  offices  here.  Why  not,  if  the  pro 
tection  of  property  be  the  great  object  of  Gov 
ernment  ?  why  not,  if  interest  is  before  justice? 
why  not,  if  the  higher  law  of  God  is  to  be 
sneered  at  in  state  and  church  ? " 

When  Anthony  Burns  was  arrested  in  Bos 
ton,  May  24,  1854,  claimed  as  a  slave  of  one 
Suttle  of  Virginia,  the  city  was  stirred  to 
its  depth.  A  meeting  of  protest  was  held 
in  Faneuil  Hall,  addressed  by  Theodore  Parker 
and  Wendell  Phillips.  The  object  was  to  arouse 
the  people  to  such  an  extent  that  they  would 


256      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

rush  upon  the  Court  House  and  liberate  the 
prisoner.  A  powerful  platform  speaker,  Par 
ker  went  beyond  himself  on  this  occasion. 
"We  are  the  vassals  of  Virginia,"  he  said, 
"she  reaches  her  arm  over  the  graves  of  our 
mothers,  and  kidnaps  men  in  the  city  of  the 
Puritans.  Gentlemen,  there  is  no  Boston 
to-day.  There  was  a  Boston  once,  now  there 
is  a  North  Suburb  to  the  city  of  Alexandria." 
A  raid  was  made  upon  the  Court  House;  a 
deputy  marshal  was  killed ;  the  militia  was 
ordered  out ;  but  the  black  man  was  sentenced 
and  returned,  amid  thousands  of  sorrowing 
people,  to  his  Southern  owner,  the  church  bells 
solemnly  ringing  and  many  of  the  houses 
being  draped  in  black.  Parker  with  others 
was  arrested  for  complicity  in  the  attack. 
The  charge,  however,  was  dismissed,  because 
of  a  defective  indictment.  So  he  was  free  to 
use  his  Sunday  sermon  as  a  trumpet  call  to 
arms  to  oppose  "The  New  Crime  against 
Humanity."  It  was  a  ringing  sermon,  pro 
duced  by  an  overwrought  mind  feeling  keenly 
the  outrage  and  defeat,  yet  eager  to  enlist 
the  best  elements  of  society  in  behalf  of  the 


THEODORE   PARKER  257 

despised  negro.  The  arguments  were  clear 
and  well  stated,  and  the  passion  was  vehe 
ment.  This  sermon  with  the  other  anti-slav 
ery  discourses  was  not  allowed  to  pass  into 
oblivion,  but  helped  to  form  the  two  volumes 
of  "  Additional  Speeches,"  which  were  dissemi 
nated  everywhere.  His  lectures,  sometimes 
seventy  in  a  year,  delivered  in  various  parts 
of  the  country,  spread  his  influence  broadcast. 
He  may  be  reckoned  as  one  of  the  important 
men  who  kept  up  the  agitation  on  moral 
grounds  against  slavery. 

His  voice  and  pen  were  again  busy  during 
the  Kansas  War.  He  aided  the  emigrants  to 
pay  their  passage  to  Kansas  and  to  buy  arms 
to  fight  the  "border  ruffians."  "I  am  more 
than  ever  of  the  opinion,"  he  wrote,  "  that  we 
must  settle  this  question  in  the  old  Anglo- 
Saxon  way,  —  by  the  sword.  There  are  two 
constitutions  for  America,  —  one  written  on 
parchment,  and  laid  up  at  Washington ;  the 
other  also  on  parchment,  but  on  the  head  of 
a  drum."  True  to  these  sentiments  when  John 
Brown  came  to  Boston  to  obtain  advice  and 
money  with  which  to  carry  on  the  free-state 


258      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

war  in  Kansas,  Parker  was  a  confidential 
adviser ;  it  is  also  more  than  conjecture  that 
Brown  unfolded  to  him  some  of  his  plans 
for  the  Virginia  raid  and  the  insurrection 
among  the  slaves.  Parker  was  a  member  of 
the  Boston  Kansas  Committee,  and  when,  in 
1858,  Brown  secured  from  the  committee  the 
use  of  rifles  for  the  defence  of  Kansas,  more 
than  one  member  of  the  committee,  perhaps, 
knew  that  they  might  be  used  for  other  pur 
poses.  When  the  Virginia  attack  was  made, 
ending  in  miserable  failure  and  the  exe 
cution  of  Brown,  the  warlike  minister  of 
Music  Hall  was  far  away  from  his  accus 
tomed  place.  Mortal  disease  had  seized  him, 
but  from  his  sickroom  in  Rome  he  wrote  to 
America  letters  justifying  the  course  that 
Brown  had  pursued.  If  he  had  been  in  Bos 
ton  he  would  have  said  the  same  things 
without  any  hesitation.  In  his  letter  to  Mr. 
Francis  Jackson  reviewing  John  Brown's  ex 
pedition  he  upheld  such  propositions  as  that 
a  slave  has  a  right  to  kill  every  one  who  seeks 
to  prevent  his  enjoyment  of  liberty  and  that 
it  may  be  his  duty  so  to  kill,  that  a  freeman 


THEODORE    PARKER  259 

has  a  natural  right  to  help  the  slaves  to  recover 
their  liberty,  and  in  doing  so  to  aid  them  in 
killing  such  as  oppose  their  natural  freedom, 
and  that  the  performance  of  this  duty  is  to 
be  governed  by  the  freeman's  power  and  op 
portunity  to  help  the  slaves.  In  the  course 
of  the  letter  he  expressed  himself  thus :  "  No 
American  has  died  in  this  century  whose 
chance  of  earthly  immortality  is  worth  half 
so  much  as  John  Brown's." 

Parker  was  not  to  be  permitted  to  behold  the 
rousing  of  the  North  during  the  Civil  War 
when  the  chains  of  the  slave  were  broken.  By 
his  incessant  labors  in  the  cause  of  freedom  he 
had  thrown  away  his  strength.  A  whole  night 
passed  in  a  stagecoach  in  the  midst  of  inun 
dated  meadows  near  Albany  was  his  final  death 
blow.  The  hemorrhage  that  seized  him  just 
before  his  Sunday  service  on  January  9,  1859, 
put  an  end  to  his  public  ministrations,  and  sent 
him  forth  to  wander  in  search  of  health  until 
he  came  to  Florence,  where  on  May  10,  1860, 
he  laid  down  the  burden  of  life,  having  said  to 
Frances  Power  Cobbe,  who  was  near  him  in  the 
last  moments,  those  remarkable  words,  "  There 


260     THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

are  two  Theodore  Parkers  now :  one  is  dying 
here  in  Italy ;  the  other  I  have  planted  in 
America.  He  will  live  there  and  finish  my 
work." 

There  was  something  simple  and  direct  about 
Theodore  Parker;  manly,  courageous,  conscien 
tious;  whatever  he  did  was  performed  with  a 
straight-a-way  determination,  like  the  farmer's 
lad  that  he  was,  as  if  he  were  ploughing  a  furrow. 
He  could  not  be  accused  of  self-seeking,  for  he 
always  chose  the  unpopular  side.  With  the 
instincts  of  a  reformer  he  did  not  bandy  words 
in  the  courtesies  of  life ;  he  was  attacked  in  no 
smooth  phrases  and  in  returning  the  blow  there 
was  a  natural  lack  of  consideration  as  to  the 
force  of  it.  While  he  lost  many  friends  by  his 
course  of  action,  he  gained  many.  No  one  can 
read  his  rollicking  letters,  full  of  sprightliness 
and  fun,  with  many  a  touch  of  affection,  with 
out  seeing  the  happy  side  of  his  full  life,  rejoic 
ing  in  friendships,  and  eager  to  render  many 
little  services.  The  parish  duties  connected 
with  the  Twenty-eighth  Congregational  Church 
were  not  modelled  on  those  of  the  old  established 
churches ;  but  they  implied  a  fascinating  min- 


THEODORE   PARKER  26 I 

istry  at  large,  dealing  with  all  sorts  of  people, 
which  kept  Parker  busy  and  gave  him  a  strong 
hold  upon  those  who  needed  him. 

As  a  literary  man  Parker,  with  the  exception 
of  brief  editorial  duties,  almost  always  wrote 
addresses,  orations,  and  sermons  that  were  to 
be  spoken.  They  all  have,  therefore,  the  mark 
of  the  orator's  skill  rather  than  that  of  the  care 
ful  literary  man  seeking  the  best  methods  of 
expression.  There  are  many  short  sentences 
and  exclamations,  many  interrogations,  all 
arranged  to  hold  the  attention  of  an  audience. 
As  orations  are  often  the  noblest  form  of  litera 
ture  so  these  strong  words  of  an  earnest  soul, 
dealing  with  the  great  questions  that  were  mak 
ing  history,  are  more  worthy  of  preservation 
than  many  a  speech  in  Congress.  There  is 
in  them  a  minute  knowledge  of  history  and  an 
unusual  ability  in  making  historical  parallels ; 
and  facts  are  massed  so  as  to  give  them  the 
greatest  force.  Character  sketch  as  well  as 
invective  is  used  to  emphasize  a  point  or  fit 
tingly  describe  a  person ;  while  sarcasm  and 
humor  play  an  important  part.  "After  one 
has  beaten  the  single  barley-corn  of  good  sense 


262      THE  CLERGY    IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

out  of  a  whole  wagon-load  of  chaff,  the  easiest 
way  to  be  rid  of  the  rubbish,"  he  said,  "  is  to 
burn  it  up  with  the  lightning  of  wit."  Carrying 
out  this  suggestion,  he  would  make  remarks 
like  the  following,  which  were  sure  to  be 
quoted:  "Ministers  ought  to  be  ordained  on 
horse-back,  because  they  are  to  remain  so  short 
a  time  in  one  place.  It  would  be  as  emblematic 
to  inaugurate  American  politicians  by  swearing 
them  on  a  weather  cock." 

Next  to  the  books,  the  letters  can  be  classed 
as  literature.  He  was  a  great  correspondent, 
writing  to  many  of  the  most  prominent  men  of 
the  day,  and  having  a  few  persons  to  whom  he 
was  a  regular  letter  writer.  These  private 
letters  abound  in  brilliant  sayings,  and  often 
lead  one  to  decide  that  in  these  unrestrained 
methods  of  writing  many  of  his  best  thoughts 
were  created.  He  did  much  of  his  thinking  in 
letters.  The  public  letters,  like  those  to  George 
Bancroft,  Millard  Fillmore,  and  Seward,  and 
to  his  congregation  after  he  had  left  them  for 
the  last  time,  are  more  conventional;  but  at 
times  these  bubble  over  with  his  irrepressible 
spirits.  The  letters  are  full  of  characteristic 


THEODORE   PARKER  263 

sentences.  Speaking  of  the  study  of  history  to 
a  young  student  he  says :  "  It  is  not  of  much 
importance  to  know  whether  General  Fairfax 
charged  up  hill  or  down  hill,  wore  a  blue 
feather  or  a  red  one,  or  whether  his  military 
breeches  were  of  plush  or  fustian ;  but  it  is  of 
great  importance  to  know  what  ideas  were  in 
his  head,  or  in  the  heads  of  his  opponents,  and 
of  his  soldiers,  and  what  organization  those  ideas 
got  in  the  world  ;  "  of  himself,  "  I  live  in  taverns, 
move  in  railroad  cars,  and  have  my  being  in  the 
Music  Hall  and  other  places  of  public  speaking. 
I  am  not  a  skylark,  but  'a  wandering  voice.'  " 

Of  greater  value  than  the  letters,  is  the  pri 
vate  journal.  He  early  formed  the  habit  of 
keeping  a  diary,  in  which  he  wrote  his  most 
secret  thoughts.  The  motives  behind  his  ac 
tion,  the  processes  of  reasoning,  the  changes 
of  attitude  that  were  gradually  coming,  are  here 
to  be  seen  in  a  remarkably  real  way.  Certain 
things  were  put  into  it  which  could  not  be 
printed  at  the  time,  as,  in  one  case,  he  wrote 
"to  be  printed  in  1899,  as  a  memorial  of  the 
nineteenth  century."  The  journal  has  never 
been  printed  as  a  whole.  It  seems  as  if  it 


264     THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

should  be,  for  it  would  throw  much  light  on  the 
period  during  which  it  was  written.  Particularly 
concerning  the  first  European  trip,  the  journal 
contains  many  fine  and  critical  passages.  In  a 
comparison  between  the  Venus  of  Milo  and  the 
Venus  de  Medici,  it  is  recorded  that  "the  toy- 
woman  came  to  her  perfect  flower  in  the  Medi- 
cean  Venus :  that  is  all  she  is,  —  woman  as  a 
plaything,  a  bawble  woman,  voluptuous,  but  not 
offensive  directly  to  the  conscience.  It  is  only 
after  much  reflection  that  you  say  '  Get  thee 
behind  me  ! '  But  the  Venus  of  Milo  is  a  glori 
ous  human  creature,  made  for  all  the  events  of 
life."  A  passage  on  Venice  is  worth  remem 
bering,  as  the  city  of  color  and  silence  and  re 
flected  beauty  stole  into  the  heart  of  the  writer : 
"  Venice  is  a  dream  of  the  sea.  Occidental 
science  and  Oriental  fantasy  seem  to  have 
united  to  produce  it.  A  pagan  Greek  might 
say  that  Neptune,  drunk  with  nectar  and 
Aphrodite,  slept  in  the  caves  of  the  sea,  and 
dreamed  as  he  slept :  Venice  is  the  petrifaction 
of  his  dream.  The  sun  colors  curiously  the 
walls  of  her  palaces  and  churches ;  it  seems  as 
if  their  wealth  had  run  over,  and  stained  the 


THEODORE   PARKER  265 

walls."  Of  political  and  religious  opinions,  the 
journal  is  full ;  but  they  are  in  a  line  with  his 
public  statements,  often  more  pointed  and  with 
less  regard  for  conventionality. 

The  occasional  poems  and  translations,  while 
showing  an  interest  in  poetry,  never  rose  above 
a  very  ordinary  level.  They  seem  to  have  been 
inspired  principally  by  religious  subjects.  In 
them,  and  his  more  formal  prayers,  are  best  to 
be  seen  his  moments  of  meditation  and  devo 
tion.  Sonnets,  songs,  blank  verse  lyrics,  and 
little  quatrains  of  verse  were  written  all 
through  his  life,  but  as  a  pastime  or  to  hold 
some  fleeting  mood.  In  youth  they  bore  such 
titles  as  "  An  Evening  Hymn,"  "Reflections  at 
Midnight,"  "To  a  Little  Flower,"  "A  Sere 
nade."  At  a  later  date  they  were  distinctly 
religious,  and,  during  the  last  years,  were  often 
translations  from  the  German  poets,  especially 
Heine.  He  took  great  pains  with  them,  think 
ing  they  were  better  than  much  of  his  more 
serious  work.  But  they  are  halting  in  versifi 
cation,  with  little  imagination,  and  lack  any  ele 
ment  of  permanent  strength.  "The  Evening 
Hymn"  begins:  — 


266      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

"  The  chiming  of  the  evening  breeze 
That  plays  among  the  boughs ; 

The  ripple  of  the  purple  seas, 
As  night  her  mantle  throws ; 

The  unveiling  of  each  timid  star 
That  sheds  its  beauty  from  afar, 

All  these  have  voices  for  mine  ear." 

In  the  fourteen  line  poems,  which  hardly 
merit  the  name  sonnet,  there  are  better  lines :  — 

"  Thy  truth  is  still  the  light 
Which  guides  the  nations  groping  on  their  way, 
Stumbling  and  falling  in  disastrous  night, 
Yet  hoping  ever  for  the  perfect  day." 

And  in  a  blank  verse  stanza :  — 

"For  the  sad  sense  of  human  woe  is  deep 
Within  my  heart,  and  deepens  daily  there." 

Or  when  writing  of  the  ending  of  his  days, 

"  Well,  I  shall  lay  my  bones 
In  some  sharp  crevice  of  the  broken  way." 

It  is  hardly  fair  to  give  any  prominence  to 
Parker's  poetry.  He  was  a  man  of  action. 
His  words  were  deeds,  and  he  swung  his  pen 
as  if  it  had  been  a  sword.  Before  he  was  put 
to  rest  in  the  little  Protestant  cemetery  in  Flor 
ence,  where  he  found  a  lonely  grave,  he  wrote 
to  his  constant  friend,  George  Ripley,  a  letter 


THEODORE  PARKER  267 

which  showed   how  he  rated   the  work  of   his 

life :  - 

"  O,  George !  the  life  I  am  here  slowly  drag 
ging  to  an  end  —  tortuous,  but  painless  —  is  a 
life,  very  imperfect,  and  fails  of  much  I  meant 
to  hit  and  might  have  reached,  nay  should,  had 
there  been  ten  or  twenty  years  more  left  for 
me  !  But  on  the  whole,  it  has  not  been  a  mean 
life,  measured  by  the  common  run  of  men; 
never  a  selfish  one.  Above  all  things  else,  I 
have  sought  to  teach  the  true  idea  of  man,  of 
God,  of  religion  with  its  truths,  its  duties,  and 
its  joys.  I  never  fought  for  myself,  nor  against 
a  private  foe ;  but  have  gone  into  the  battle  of 
the  nineteenth  century,  and  followed  the  flag  of 
humanity." 


CHAPTER    VIII 

HORACE    BUSHNELL 

ONCE,  on  a  stray  piece  of  paper,  Horace 
Bushnell  wrote  in  pencil  a  fragment  of  biog 
raphy,  in  which  he  described  his  life.  "  I  have 
never  been  a  great  agitator, "  he  said,  "  never 
pulled  a  wire  to  get  the  will  of  men,  never  did 
a  politic  thing.  It  was  not  for  this  reason,  but 
because  I  was  looked  upon  as  a  singularity  — 
not  exactly  sane,  perhaps,  in  many  things  — 
that  I  was  almost  never  a  president  or  vice- 
president  of  any  society,  and  almost  never  on 
a  committee.  .  .  .  But  still  it  has  been  a  great 
thing  even  for  me  to  have  lived."  If  there 
ever  was  a  man,  independent,  self-reliant,  dis 
daining  schemes,  speaking  the  truth  as  he  con 
ceived  it,  and  creating  the  antagonism  of  little 
minds,  it  was  this  man  who  never  was  on  a 
committee,  nor  president  of  anything.  He 
did  not  work  well  with  any  yoke-fellow,  and 
268 


HORACE   BUSHNELL  269 

always  spoke  his  own  mind  without  regard  to 
the  opinions  of  any  one  who  might  take  him  to 
task.  For  these  reasons,  among  others,  he  was 
never  on  a  committee,  but  caused  a  good  many 
committees  to  be  formed  to  consider  him.  His 
singularity  of  opinion  and  the  vigor  with  which 
he  expressed  it,  bred  much  disquietude  in  the 
Hartford  Central  Association,  and  to  those 
who  write  letters  to  religious  periodicals,  and  to 
the  race  of  pamphleteers.  "But  still  it  has 
been  a  great  thing  even  for  me  to  live,"  he 
said.  Great  indeed  to  have  a  rugged  soul 
face  to  face  with  life  and  human  thought, 
and  man's  government,  and  man's  faith;  and 
without  fear,  not  confused  by  the  many  voices 
about,  looking  steadily,  yet  reverently  into  the 
heart  of  truth.  Such  men  dwell  alone.  If 
they  give  their  message  to  the  world  in  vari 
ous  forms,  sometimes  with  impatience,  even 
rudeness,  sometimes  with  obscurity,  and  again 
with  the  fervor  of  exalted  expression  too  subtle 
for  all  to  understand,  it  is  because  of  their  iso 
lation  and  ignorance,  perhaps,  of  the  propri 
eties  by  reason  of  absorption  in  something 
higher  than  etiquette.  It  is  a  great  thing  to 


270     THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

have  such  a  man  live,  even  if  he  is  self-confi 
dent,  irritating,  and  heretical. 

Such  a  life  gives  an  impulse  to  everything 
it  deals  with,  the  college  where  he  studies,  the 
community  where  he  lives,  the  church  that  he 
has  chosen,  the  state  and  the  country  which  he 
loves.  So  Horace  Bushnell  has  left  his  mark 
wherever  he  has  gone  :  at  Yale  College,  in  Hart 
ford,  in  New  England,  in  California,  through 
out  America,  as  his  speeches  and  books  have 
reached  through  the  land.  Political  science, 
education,  ethics,  theology,  the  making  of  his- 
tory,  —  all  have  received  something  from  his 
thought  and  work. 

Born  in  Litchfield,  Connecticut,  April  14, 
1802,  and  living  in  Hartford,  as  minister  of 
the  North  Church  until  his  retirement  in  1859, 
and  after  this  until  his  death,  with  short  resi 
dences  elsewhere,  Horace  Bushnell  was  pecul 
iarly  a  Connecticut  man.  His  early  days  were 
passed  in  one  of  those  "primitive  universities 
of  homespun,"  as  he  described  such  a  humble 
home  as  his  father's,  where  hard  manual  work 
was  dignified  by  sturdy  character  and  religious 
training.  He  did  a  man's  work  early,  and  built 


HORACE   BUSHNELL  2/1 

for  recreation  the  stone  dam  above  his  father's 
carding  mill.  The  mother  was  the  household 
power,  whose  sacrifices  he  afterward  said  "were 
scarcely  to  be  noted  without  tears."  In  college 
he  was  looked  upon  as  a  remarkable  man.  His 
tutor  wrote,  "  Few  men  have  left  on  my  mind 
impressions  of  their  personal  identity  more 
clear  and  abiding."  He  was  strong  of  physique, 
tall,  muscular,  with  a  head  of  unusual  size 
covered  with  black  hair;  and  a  ruddy  com 
plexion,  with  deep-set  gray  eyes,  —  one  of  the 
type  of  masterful  young  men  that  occasionally 
a  college  class  numbers  among  its  members, 
good  at  athletics  and  in  the  class  room,  lead 
ers  in  debate  who  make  the  current  political 
issues  vital,  founders  of  musical  societies,  and 
sometimes  rebellious  against  authority.  Young 
Bushnell  was  of  this  kind,  debating  the  Mis 
souri  Compromise  and  whether  the  President 
ought  to  be  elected  directly  by  the  people, 
founding  the  Beethoven  Musical  Society,  and 
rusticated  because  of  revolt  against  an  unfair 
examination  that  included  a  portion  of  Conic 
Sections  that  had  been  omitted  in  the  course. 
After  graduation  he  taught  for  a  brief  time, 


2/2      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN    LETTERS 

then  made  a  brilliant  success  on  the  Journal  of 
Commerce,  New  York,  returning  to  New  Haven 
as  a  tutor  and  preparing  to  study  law,  and  later 
entering  the  ministry. 

The  story  of  Bushnell's  life  has  few  dra 
matic  incidents  in  it,  nor  was  it  varied  by  noted 
friendships  or  residence  in  many  places.  He 
remained  the  faithful  minister  of  the  North 
Church  in  Hartford  from  his  settlement,  1833, 
until  his  withdrawal  because  of  ill-health  in 
1859,  from  which  date  until  his  death  on  Feb 
ruary  17,  1876,  he  enjoyed  a  ministry  at  large, 
preaching  on  many  important  occasions  and 
writing  some  of  his  best-known  books.  A  trip 
to  Europe,  one  to  Cuba,  and  visits  to  California 
and  Minnesota  in  search  of  health  were  espe 
cially  delightful  to  him,  and  stored  his  mind 
with  fresh  illustrations  and  widened  his  sym 
pathies.  He  dwelt  for  many  years  in  his  house 
in  Hartford  which  he  designed,  and  where  he 
passed  the  greater  part  of  days  of  research  and 
study. 

Ill  health  pursued  him,  and  after  a  severe 
strain  of  work  he  was  forced  to  remain  idle 
for  a  time,  though  his  appearance  was  far  from 


HORACE  BUSHNELL  273 

that  of  a  delicate  man.  As  Carlyle  said  of 
John  Sterling :  "  Less  than  any  man  he  gave 
you  the  idea  of  ill  health.  Ill  health?  Nay; 
you  found  out  at  last  it  was  the  very  excess  of 
life  in  him  that  brought  on  disease."  He  had 
an  abundance  of  vitality  even  in  his  sickness. 
When  abroad  for  rest  he  could  not  remain 
inactive.  In  London  during  the  Oregon  boun 
dary  discussion,  he  wrote  an  important  pamphlet 
to  explain  the  American  position.  During  this 
same  visit  in  Europe  he  did  a  most  characteris 
tic  thing.  When  deeply  interested  in  Italian 
independence,  he  wrote  his  "  Letter  to  the 
Pope,"  which  was  of  sufficient  account  to  be 
translated  into  Italian  and  placed  on  the  Index 
Expurgatorius.  His  keen  observation  of  men 
and  events  is  displayed  in  his  letters  from 
abroad.  He  found  that  Lord  John  Russell 
said  "  havin'  and  walkin'  "  ;  and  of  Thiers  as  an 
orator  he  remarked  upon  his  "  husky  but  shrill 
treble,  John  Randolph-wise  voice,"  but  found 
him  full  of  enthusiasm  and  "  gesturing  up  and 
down  with  both  hands  as  fast  as  he  could." 

But  this  was   play.     His   serious  work  was 
great  in  quantity  and  in  quality.     Besides  his 


2/4      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

regular  sermons  he  prepared  orations  and 
addresses  to  be  delivered  before  societies  and 
educational  institutions.  He  was  much  sought 
after  as  a  special  preacher.  He  spoke  before 
the  New  England  Society,  and  delivered  the 
<£>.B.K.  oration  and  Commencement  addresses 
at  Yale.  He  never  failed  to  observe  the  civil 
anniversaries,  and  when  questions  of  political 
moment  were  before  the  people  he  always 
lifted  up  his  voice  with  a  message.  The  work 
of  such  a  ministry  is  not  confined  to  the 
weekly  sermon  or  the  parish  calls,  as  impor 
tant  as  these  are ;  and  when  the  sermon  is 
vital  and  deals  with  present  conditions  it  be 
comes  an  opportunity  for  a  wise  man  with  a 
well-stored  mind  to  touch  upon  a  great  range 
of  subjects.  The  themes  of  the  pulpit  are  not 
limited,  but  whatever  touches  the  intellectual 
or  moral  nature  of  man  comes  in  for  discussion. 
What  chances  there  are  to  bring  to  hearers 
history,  poetry,  philosophy,  ideal  dreams  of  a 
regenerated  society,  and  to  infuse  into  them 
inspiration  and  faith !  Then,  besides  these 
regular  discourses,  there  are  the  special  occa 
sions  and  the  printing  of  books  to  disseminate 


HORACE   BUSHNELL  275 

one's  thoughts  more  broadly.  To  Bushnell  a 
special  occasion  was  the  signal  for  the  use  of 
his  best  powers.  He  threw  into  the  prepara 
tion  for  it  his  greatest  energy,  and  many  of  his 
most  forcible  utterances  thus  became  known. 
At  other  times  his  pen  was  not  idle,  for  he 
loved  to  express  what  was  in  him.  He  there 
fore  published  many  books.  They  consist 
chiefly  of  pamphlets  containing  special  dis 
courses,  inspired  by  some  topic  of  current  in 
terest,  volumes  of  sermons  carefully  prepared, 
books  on  moral  questions,  and  theological 
treatises,  —  all  remarkable  for  freshness  of 
treatment,  independence  of  thought,  a  wealth 
of  illustration,  keen  reasoning,  and  passages  of 
genuine  eloquence.  They  are  full  of  epigram 
and  common  sense,  marked  by  a  breadth  of 
view  and  wide  sympathies,  ingenious  and, 
above  all,  interesting  either  to  listen  to  or  to 
read.  They  have  signs  of  life,  even  to  exuber 
ance,  rough  at  times,  and  with  the  vigor  of  a 
wielded  sabre  or  the  blows  of  a  hammer. 

A  man  who  had  served  his  time  in  a  news 
paper  office  and  who  seriously  thought  of 
studying  law  with  a  view  to  a  possible  political 


2/6     THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN  LETTERS 

future  could  not  long  hold  aloof  from  a  discus 
sion  of   political  questions.     As   early  as  1839 
he   delivered    on   the    subject    of    slavery    an 
important     sermon    which    was     freely    circu 
lated.       It    had    in    it    none    of    the    passion 
of    the    anti-slavery    movement,    but    was    an 
attempt  to  reason  with  his   Southern  brethren 
and  for  a  moment  to  take  their  point  of  view. 
He  saw  that  nothing  could  be  gained  by  stir 
ring  up  anger  on  either  side,  and  he  felt  that 
if   the    evils   were   temperately    shown,  not  by 
reference   to   special   cases   of   wrong,   but  by 
indicating  what  the   law   permitted   as   wrong 
in  principle,  and  then  appealing  to  the  South 
to  modify  its  own  institution,  he  would  accom 
plish  more  than  by  ill-considered  condemnation. 
The  denial  of  marriage  rites  to  the  slave,  with 
no  protection  to  life  or   limb  or  chastity,  and 
the  ignoring  of  a  moral  or  intellectual   nature 
in  the  slave,  were  the  special  points  dwelt  upon. 
To  show  his  lack  of  sympathy  with  the  aboli 
tionists  and  the  futility  of    their   methods,  he 
exclaimed :  "  If  I  were  a  Southern  legislator  I 
should    think    it    my    first   duty    to    save    the 
sovereignty   of   my   state,  and   I   would   never 


HORACE   BUSHNELL  277 

so  far  humble  it  as  to  vote  for  the  abolition 
of  slavery  at  the  beck  of  a  Northern  associa 
tion."  The  abolitionists  were  in  error  because 
they  attempted  to  drive  the  slave  owner  as 
the  overseer  drives  the  negroes,  and  the  first 
sin  of  the  organization  "was  a  sin  of  ill  man 
ners.  They  did  not  go  to  work  like  Christian 
gentlemen."  In  explanation  of  the  attitude  of 
the  clergy  toward  the  abolitionists  it  was  stated 
that  "  the  clergy  have  been  thrown  into  a  false 
position.  Many  of  them  have  seen  and  pitied 
the  sad  mixture  of  false  opinion  which  has 
been  at  work  in  this  movement.  They  have 
attempted  to  drive  the  clergy.  They  would 
feel,  in  fact,  that  an  identification  with  your 
society  would  be  only  throwing  themselves  into 
the  worst  possible  position  for  acting  with 
effect." 

In  later  years,  when  the  slavery  question 
became  more  acute,  Bushnell  again  and  again 
spoke  upon  the  subject.  The  Fast  Day  ser 
mon  of  1844  on  "Politics  under  the  Law  of 
God,"  as  he  was  fond  of  remarking,  "  made  a 
breeze."  The  Whigs  in  the  congregation  were 
very  much  disturbed  and  thought  their  minister 


2/8      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

was  dealing  with  subjects  outside  the  Gospel. 
He  did  not  hesitate  to  refer  to  Mr.  Clay's 
aspirations  for  the  Presidency  and  condemned 
him  because  of  the  Missouri  Compromise.  The 
sermon  was  printed  and  used  as  a  campaign 
document,  and  circulated  so  generally  that  the 
remark  of  an  expert  was  probably  true  when 
he  stated  that  Bushnell  struck  Mr.  Clay  such 
a  blow  that  it  cost  him  ten  thousands  of  votes. 
As  a  remarkable  analysis  of  the  relations 
between  the  North  and  the  South  a  few  years 
before  the  Civil  War,  the  sermon  on  "  Northern 
Iron,"  preached  in  1854,  is  a  good  example. 
The  text  contains  one  of  those  powerful  figures 
that  Jeremiah  so  often  uses,  "  Shall  iron  break 
the  northern  iron  and  steel  ?  "  The  application 
is  obvious :  Is  the  iron  will  of  the  North  to  be 
broken  by  the  political  methods  of  the  South  ? 
The  Northern  blood  needs  strengthening.  The 
dignity  of  Northern  power  demands  assertion. 
Bushnell  saw  the  possibility  of  the  strife  ahead, 
but  it  was  faced  with  confidence  as  to  the  issue. 
Whatever  might  come,  war  or  disaster,  there 
was  a  splendid  faith  in  the  description  of  the 
"  Northern  Iron "  as  the  true  democratic  ele- 


HORACE   BUSHNELL  2/9 

ment  in  American  history,  which  "is  in  the 
people,  the  unsophisticated  people,  and  it  is  just 
as  certain  to  assert  its  powers  and  come  out 
in  the  unfolding  of  life  as  a  tree  to  bear  fruit 
in  its  kind."  There  was  never  a  wavering  from 
the  thought  that  slavery  would  be  destroyed, 
and  one  of  the  strongest  signs  that  pointed  to 
the  annihilation  was  the  fact  that  literature  and 
scholarship  were  arrayed  against  it;  "for  what 
people  were  ever  able  for  any  length  of  time 
to  withstand  the  supremacy  and  fight  off  the 
ideas  of  their  own  literature  ? "  It  was  noted 
with  equal  confidence  that  the  theatre-goers 
who  took  no  interest  in  what  went  on  in  the 
churches  "have  been  hearing  Uncle  Tom  and 
weeping  with  him  night  after  night." 

The  exhibition  of  such  sturdy  manhood  in 
upholding  the  right  must  have  been  felt  through 
many  communities.  Such  words  created  opin 
ion,  and  kept  the  people  with  steady  gaze  on 
the  principle  at  stake.  They  were  heard  by  the 
future  captains  of  regiments,  and  talked  about 
among  the  enlisted  men  to  be.  It  is  something 
to  have  the  lofty  principle  of  a  nation's  history 
interpreted  frequently  for  men  and  voices  speak- 


280      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

ing  truth  amid  the  confusion  of  political  conflict. 
In  the  midst  of  the  fanaticism  and  hysterics  it 
was  good  to  have  a  well-balanced  set  of  men 
who  were  just  as  earnest  as  the  extremists  but 
more  rational  in  their  attitudes.  Those  were 
the  men  who  possessed  the  nation ;  when  the 
trial  came,  the  wisdom  of  their  opinions  became 
more  apparent. 

After  the  disaster  of  Bull  Run,  when  the 
nation  was  humiliated,  Bushnell's  calmness  of 
attitude  was  again  illustrated  by  his  discourse 
on  "  Reverses  Needed."  He  was  always  try 
ing  to  find  the  bright  and  positive  side  of  a 
failure,  feeling  sure  that  the  meaning  did  not 
lie  on  the  surface,  but  was  below.  The  defeat 
of  Bull  Run  was  necessary  he  thought  to  unite 
the  people  of  the  North,  to  kindle  a  new  alle 
giance,  to  make  the  cause  seem  more  sacred. 
"There  must  be  tears  in  the  houses,"  he  said, 
"  as  well  as  blood  in  the  fields.  In  these,  and 
such  terrible  throes,  the  true  loyalty  is  born." 

Another  of  the  civic  questions  that  Bushnell 
dealt  with  in  a  public  way  was  the  appropria 
tion  of  money  to  the  parochial  schools.  The 
schools  were  to  him  as  important  as  the  arse- 


HORACE   BUSHNELL  28 1 

nals  or  armed  defences  of  the  country,  the 
foundation  of  the  social  order.  Any  attack 
upon  them  was  met  by  firm  resistance.  Paro 
chial  schools  were  no  more  than  private  schools, 
and  it  would  be  unwise  to  give  money  from  the 
public  fund  to  local  and  private  institutions. 
It  might  be  demanded  next  that  the  state 
should  support  schools  to  teach  Paine's  "Age 
of  Reason"  or  the  Mormon  Bible.  "We  tax," 
he  said,  "the  Quakers  for  defect  of  military 
service,  bachelors  who  have  no  children,  and 
we  ought  to  tax  the  refractory  un-American." 

He  thought  on  the  whole  that  there  was  a 
good  deal  of  cant  in  the  complaint  of  godless 
education,  for  he  said  that  if  the  Bible  was 
excluded  from  the  schools,  "  I  would  yet  under 
take,  if  I  could  have  my  liberty  as  a  teacher, 
to  communicate  more  of  real  Christian  truth 
to  a  Catholic  and  a  Protestant  boy  seated  side 
by  side,  in  the  regulation  of  their  treatment  of 
each  other  as  related  in  terms  of  justice  and 
charity." 

Dr.  Bushnell's  interest  in  education  was  put 
to  practical  uses  when  in  search  of  health 
he  spent  some  years  in  California.  The  new 


282      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

country  delighted  him  with  its  picturesque 
pioneer  life,  and  he  thought  of  resigning  his 
church  and  settling  in  the  far  West  as  Presi 
dent  of  the  College  of  California,  to  which 
position  he  was  called  in  1856.  He  actually 
assumed  the  duties  of  the  office  without  salary 
for  a  time,  declining  to  serve  finally  in  1861, 
as  in  1840  he  had  refused  the  Presidency  of 
Middlebury  College.  In  the  meantime  he  de 
voted  himself  to  the  selection  of  a  site  for  the 
college,  visiting  many  places  and  publishing 
appeals  for  the  support  of  the  institution.  He 
spent  a  good  deal  of  time  "in  examining  views 
and  prospects ;  exploring  water  courses,  deter 
mining  their  levels ;  inquiring  and  even  prospect 
ing  to  form  some  judgment  of  the  probabilities 
of  railroads."  An  illustration  of  his  practical 
good  sense  is  given  in  the  fact  that  the  college 
was  located  as  he  advised,  and  the  route  of  the 
Pacific  Railroad  which  he  selected  was  the  one 
adopted. 

His  interest  in  local  matters  was  shown  by 
his  efforts  to  secure  a  beautiful  park  for  Hart 
ford,  which  was  named  after  him.  Through 
years  of  opposition  he  at  last  succeeded  in 


HORACE  BUSHNELL  283 

turning  an  unattractive  area  of  the  city  into  an 
extensive  and  well-ordered  park,  the  pride  of 
all  the  inhabitants.  He  appeared  in  person 
before  the  city  council,  and  outlined  for  them 
on  a  large  map  his  plan.  The  members  were 
opposed  to  him  at  first,  but  were  won  over  to 
his  view;  and  by  his  persistence,  in  having 
bills  even  introduced  into  the  Legislature,  he 
attained  his  object.  In  after  years  it  was  com 
mon  for  him  to  hear  some  of  his  former  oppo 
nents  say,  "  After  all,  the  best  investment  our 
city  has  ever  made  is  the  Park." 

No  one  had  a  greater  love  than  he  for  his 
native  state  of  Connecticut,  its  history,  tradi 
tions,  and  accomplishments.  When  he  was 
invited  to  address  the  Legislature  on  the  occa 
sion  of  the  opening  of  the  Normal  School  in 
1851,  he  delivered  a  notable  oration  on  the 
theme,  "Historical  Estimate  of  Connecticut." 
It  was  a  well-considered  survey  of  what  the 
state  had  stood  for.  He  took  the  subject  be 
cause  he  had  often  felt  that  there  was  a  want 
of  public  feeling  in  the  state.  The  result  was 
an  address  of  great  power  and  judgment ;  and 
the  people  must  have  been  stimulated  to  give 


284      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

evidence  of  a  new  public  spirit.  Historical 
analysis  showed  clearly  that  the  term  "blue- 
law  state "  in  no  wise  described  Connecticut, 
and  that  the  so-called  blue  laws  were  the  inven 
tion  of  a  Tory  renegade,  Samuel  Peters,  and 
were  as  false  as  the  stories  of  the  wooden  nut 
megs.  Connecticut  never  had  a  royal  gov 
ernor,  and  the  independence  of  the  colony  was 
such  that  no  officer  dared  to  sell  any  of  the 
stamps  of  the  Stamp  Tax  within  its  borders. 
The  claim  was  made  that  the  colony,  only 
three  years  after  its  settlement,  formed  the 
model  of  the  first  American  Constitution  by 
providing  for  elective  franchise  not  limited  to 
church  members ;  that  the  oath  of  allegiance 
was  made  not  to  king  or  parliament,  but 
directly  to  the  state,  and  that  Connecticut  con 
tributed  the  Federative  idea  to  the  Constitution. 
At  the  hands  of  the  historians  Connecticut 
has  never  received  her  due,  and  it  was  in 
the  interests  of  truth  that  Bushnell  contended 
that  the  Ticonderoga  expedition  was  projected 
by  Connecticut,  and  executed  by  her  men, 
Massachusetts  only  assisting,  and  that  Putnam 
was  the  leader  at  Bunker  Hill.  This  oration, 


HORACE  BUSHNELL  285 

together  with  one  on  "  The  Age  of  Home 
spun,"  set  forth  better  than  in  formal  history 
the  stern  virtues  of  Connecticut,  the  nursing 
mother  of  great  men,  who  from  the  farms  and 
the  cottages  on  the  hillside  went  forth  into 
other  regions  to  bless  them.  In  the  latter 
oration  he  described  the  heroes  of  homespun : 
"When  the  hard,  wiry-looking  patriarch  of 
homespun  sets  off  for  Hartford  or  Bridgeport 
to  exchange  the  little  surplus  of  his  year's  pro 
duction,  carrying  his  provision  with  him  and 
the  fodder  of  his  team,  and  taking  his  boy 
along  to  show  him  the  great  world,  you  may 
laugh  at  the  simplicity,  or  pity,  if  you  will,  the 
sordid  look  of  the  picture ;  but  five  or  ten  years 
hence,  this  boy  will,  like  enough,  be  found  in 
college,  digging  out  the  cent's  worth  of  his 
father's  money  in  hard  study ;  and  some  twenty 
years  later  he  will  be  returning,  in  his  honors 
as  a  celebrated  judge  or  governor,  or  senator 
and  public  orator,  from  some  one  of  the  great 
states  of  the  Republic." 

In  his  estimate  of  Connecticut  there  was 
no  narrowness,  for  he  could  equally  see  the 
greatness  of  the  fathers  of  New  England. 


286      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

This  was  his  topic  when  he  delivered  the  ora 
tion  before  the  New  England  Society  of  New 
York  in  1849.  He  felt  that  they  had  been 
overpraised  in  assigning  to  them  a  knowledge 
of  what  they  were  founding,  with  a  prophet 
ical  vision  of  the  whole  fabric  of  the  future 
government.  "  The  Founders  Great  in  their 
Unconsciousness  "  was  his  special  subject,  and 
he  had  his  sarcasm  ready  for  those  who  sup 
pose  "  the  world  to  be  a  kind  of  professor's 
chair  and  expect  events  to  transpire  logically 
in  it."  The  fathers  came  not  to  found  a 
democracy  nor  a  republic,  but  they  accepted 
their  present  duty,  and  out  of  that  grew  the 
future.  In  this  oration  occurs  one  of  his 
most  eloquent  passages  :  "  They  came  not  with 
any  conscious  or  designing  agency  in  those 
great  political  and  social  issues  which  we  now 
look  upon  as  the  crowning  distinctions  of  our 
history.  Their  ideal  was  not  in  these.  Some 
times  we  smile  at  their  simplicity,  finding 
that  the  highest  hope  they  conceived  was 
nothing  but  the  hope  of  some  good  issue  for 
religion.  We  wonder  that  they  could  not  have 
had  some  conception  of  the  magnificent  re- 


HORACE   BUSHNELL  287 

suits  of  liberty  and  social  order  here  to  be 
revealed.  We  want  them  to  be  heroes,  but 
we  cannot  allow  them  to  be  heroes  of  faith. 
But  it  will  sometimes  be  discovered  that  in 
actual  life  there  are  two  kinds  of  heroes  — 
heroes  for  the  visible  and  heroes  for  the  in 
visible;  they  that  see  their  mark  hung  out  as 
a  flag  on  some  turret  or  battlement,  and  they 
that  see  it  nowhere  save  in  the  grand  ideal 
of  the  inward  life;  the  extempore  heroes 
fighting  out  a  victory  definitely  seen  in  some 
thing  near  at  hand;  and  the  life-long,  cen 
tury-long  heroes  that  are  instigated  by  no 
ephemeral  crown  or  ephemeral  passion,  but 
have  sounded  the  deep  bass-work  of  God's 
principle  and  have  dared  calmly  to  rest  their 
all  upon  it,  come  the  issue  where  it  may  or 
when  it  may  or  in  what  form  God  will  give 
it." 

The  civic  question  that  brought  forth  more 
of  a  book  from  Bushnell  than  the  usual 
pamphlet  was  "Woman's  Suffrage."  He  had 
taken  a  great  dislike  to  the  idea  of  giving 
the  franchise  to  women.  The  title  of  the 
book  alone  was  a  contribution  to  the  opposi- 


288      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

tion  arguments,  and  was  more  influential  than 
the  book  itself.  It  was  called  "  Reform 
against  Nature."  This  phrase  went  every 
where,  and  confirmed  the  objectors  and  won 
new  adherents  to  the  cause  of  conservatism, 
through  it  was  strange  that  in  this  instance 
he  should  have  been  called  a  conservative, 
when  in  everything  else  he  was  generally  con 
sidered  most  radical.  But  his  chivalry  and  con 
ception  of  the  purity  of  the  home  and  woman's 
refined  and  delicate  position  in  life  made  him 
feel  that  it  would  be  a  loss  to  the  world  to 
brush  aside  the  bloom  and  flower  of  feminine 
aloofness  from  the  sordid  struggle  of  men 
for  political  honors.  Nature  had  designed 
the  two  individuals  to  play  different  and  sup 
plementary  parts.  Let  the  man  have  his 
field  in  war,  politics,  and  commerce,  where  he 
is  fitted  to  use  his  power,  and  the  woman 
reign  in  the  home,  in  the  field  of  charity,  of 
music,  and  poetry.  There  was  a  reform  that 
he  was  willing  to  admit,  viz.,  women  should 
be  given  more  of  a  chance  to  make  advances 
toward  marriage ;  and  coeducation  seemed 
more  feasible  to  him  since  he  visited  Oberlin 


HORACE  BUSHNELL  289 

and  Antioch  College  where  it  was  said  that 
the  influence  of  the  young  women  was  such 
that  "male  students  were  first  called  gentle 
men  at  Antioch."  The  book  is  an  example 
of  special  pleading  throughout,  and  has  the 
advantage  of  massing  in  a  convenient  form  the 
anti-suffrage  arguments.  Though  there  are 
many  imaginary  and  fantastic  dangers  in 
vented,  he  is  not  able  to  withstand  the  prog 
ress  of  the  newer  conception  of  womanhood. 
A  woman  has  a  right  to  make  her  own  liv 
ing.  She  may  study  a  profession,  but  there 
are  limitations.  A  woman  may  study  law, 
but  not  address  a  jury,  or  make  a  speech  in 
the  courtroom.  She  may  practise  medicine, 
but  not  surgery.  "  Reform  against  Nature " 
will  remain  a  curiosity  of  what  a  progres 
sive  mind  can  do  in  the  matter  of  conser 
vatism  when  the  emotions  are  touched  rather 
than  the  reason. 

These  political  books  and  addresses  of  Dr. 
Bushnell  reveal  thoroughness  of  research  and 
an  intimate  knowledge  of  contemporary  condi 
tions.  They  show  him  as  the  citizen,  loving  his 
city,  and  state,  and  country,  the  spokesman  of 


2QO      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

the  conscience  of  many,  and  the  guide  to  their 
political  thinking.  They  contain  pointed  sen 
tences  that  stick,  winged  words  that  fly.  While 
his  civil  interests  were  great,  his  ethical  and 
religious  interests  were  greater.  He  was  a 
religious  and  moral  teacher,  but  one  who  could 
not  help  applying  his  principle  to  life ;  so  even 
his  most  abstruse  theological  reasonings  become 
clear  as  appeals  to  a  common  humanity,  which 
has  its  days  to  live  in  the  streets  and  houses 
of  an  intricate  civilization. 

As  a  minister  of  religion,  Dr.  Bushnell's 
principal  literary  work  was  contained  in  his 
sermons.  They  were  always  written  with  great 
care,  until  later  in  life  he  was  forced  to  extempo 
rize,  because  of  his  many  duties  and  delicacy 
of  health.  The  sermons  were  collected  into 
volumes,  and  through  them  he  preached  to  ever 
larger  and  more  enthusiastic  congregations. 
When  they  were  delivered  from  the  pulpit 
there  was  always  behind  them  the  force  of  his 
nervous  personality,  emphasized  by  the  favorite 
swing  of  his  right  arm  from  the  shoulder,  but 
when  read  they  lose  none  of  their  power. 
They  were  written  in  the  heat  of  thought,  and 


HORACE   BUSHNELL  2QI 

carry  with  them  the  glow  of  earnestness. 
Sometimes  the  effect  of  a  sermon  was  not 
what  he  intended,  as  when,  for  instance,  he 
preached  the  doctrine  that  our  earthly  employ 
ments  would  be  continued  in  the  next  world, 
and  thus  greatly  disturbed  an  undertaker  by 
making  him  feel  that  there  would  be  nothing 
for  him  to  do  throughout  eternity ;  and  an  old 
woman  was  heard  to  remark,  "  Well,  if  heaven  is 
such  a  place  for  work,  I  don't  care  to  go  there. 
I  hoped  I  should  rest."  The  principal  volumes 
of  sermons  were  "  Christ  and  His  Salvation," 
"Sermons  on  Living  Subjects,"  and  "Sermons 
for  the  New  Life."  The  last  was  the  most 
famous  and  gained  for  him  the  reputation  of  a 
great  preacher,  great  in  originality,  in  spiritual 
power,  in  imagery,  and  eloquent  in  appeal. 
These  sermons  justify  the  appreciation  of  one 
of  his  most  scholarly  hearers,  who  said  that  his 
"  emotions  from  the  depth  of  a  passionate  nature 
bore  him  sometimes  to  the  highest  flights  of  elo 
quence,  and  wit  and  sarcasm  flashed  from  his  talk 
and  speeches,  and  he  stood  the  most  indepen 
dent  and  muscular  sermonizer  in  the  American 
pulpit."  The  sermons  were  not  controversial, 


2Q2      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

nor  considered  heretical  by  his  fiercest  opponents, 
some  of  whom  wrote  him  letters  of  approval. 

The  controversy  and  opposition,  however, 
that  raged  around  him  for  many  years  were 
caused  by  his  distinctively  theological  works, 
such  as  "  God  in  Christ,"  "  Christian  Nurture," 
"  Vicarious  Sacrifice,"  and  "  Nature  and  the 
Supernatural."  When  each  of  these  was  pub 
lished  a  storm  of  editorials  and  pamphlets  in 
reply  or  in  condemnation  broke  over  his  head. 
From  college  days  he  had  felt  a  lack  of  sym 
pathy  with  the  current  orthodoxy  of  the  old 
school  and  determined  to  examine  the  Christian 
doctrines  in  the  light  of  a  more  intelligent 
exegesis,  and  in  accordance  with  the  dictates  of 
reason.  He  knew  that  he  would  be  misinter 
preted,  that  his  motives  would  be  assailed,  and 
that  he  would  draw  down  upon  himself  the 
violent  wrath  of  the  acknowledged  custodians 
of  the  faith.  It  would  be  said  that  he  was  a 
Unitarian  and  should  no  longer  be  recognized 
as  a  Congregational  clergyman.  He  considered 
what  this  antagonism  would  mean,  and  he  did 
not  speak  until  he  was  fully  prepared,  not  with 
immature  thought,  but  as  a  result  of  hard  work 


HORACE  BUSHNELL  2Q3 

and  prolonged  study.  When  he  saw  the  dan 
ger  of  his  attitude  for  freedom  of  discussion 
he  wrote  his  wife,  "  Has  my  dear  wife  any  of 
Luther's  spirit?  Will  she  enter  into  hazards 
and  reproaches  and  perhaps  privations  which 
lie  in  this  encounter  for  the  truth?"  Happily 
the  privations  did  not  come,  because  his  church 
in  Hartford  stood  by  him,  and  many  of  the 
strongest  of  his  ministerial  friends  defended 
him  ;  though  one  of  the  deacons  of  his  church 
wrote  him  a  letter  of  remonstrance,  expressing 
his  pain  that  he  now,  for  the  first  time,  differed 
from  his  pastor  "  on  doctrines  concerning  which 
his  own  views  have  not  changed  for  the  last 
thirty  years." 

The  first  evidence  of  this  independent 
thought  was  an  address  at  Andover  Seminary 
on  "  Revelation  "  in  1839.  As  he  told  his  friend, 
Dr.  Cyrus  Bartol,  "  he  had  many  questions 
hanging  on  pegs,  to  take  down  as  their  turn 
should  come."  These  questions  he  was  in 
vited  to  discuss  at  the  Divinity  School  in  Har 
vard  University,  in  the  Phi  Beta  Kappa  oration 
at  Cambridge,  in  addresses  at  Yale  College, 
and  elsewhere. 


294      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

One  of  these  questions  he  discussed  in  his 
book  on  "  Christian  Nurture/'  published  in 
1846.  The  manuscript  was  submitted  to  the 
Massachusetts  Sabbath  School  Society,  and 
after  some  hesitation,  because  of  the  novelty 
of  treatment  of  the  subject  of  the  child's  reli 
gious  training,  it  was  accepted  and  printed. 
The  book  was  attacked  so  vigorously  that  the 
Society  suppressed  it,  fearing  its  dangerous 
tendencies.  Then  Dr.  Bushnell  republished  it 
himself  with  a  communication  to  the  Society 
in  which  he  frankly  announced  to  the  members, 
"  Whether  you  will  believe  it  or  not,  a  new 
day  has  come.  If  we  will,  we  can  make  it 
a  better  day."  In  some  respects  "Christian 
Nurture "  is  the  most  important  of  Dr.  Bush- 
nell's  books.  It  applied  intelligent  methods  to 
child  education,  and  with  wisdom  and  love  dealt 
with  the  rights  of  childhood,  and  the  best 
methods  of  training  the  young  life  in  Chris 
tian  nurture.  The  growth  of  the  child  in  a 
Christian  home,  influenced  by  the  character  of 
the  parents,  and  the  unfolding  of  its  true  nature 
under  the  guidance  of  moral  and  religious  sur 
roundings,  were  considered  of  more  importance 


HORACE  BUSHNELL  295 

than  the  crisis  of  a  forced  or  hypocritical 
conversion.  It  had  previously  been  taught  in 
New  England  households  that  the  child  was  a 
depraved  being  who,  through  a  confession  of 
sin  as  an  outcast,  must  be  reconciled  to  God 
before  in  any  sense  he  could  become  a  Chris 
tian.  The  child's  mind  was  filled  with  the 
teaching  about  the  fall  of  the  race,  the  total 
depravity  of  man,  and  the  intricacies  of  the 
Calvinistic  doctrines  of  atonement.  The  result 
was  that  children  were  given  ideas  that  they 
could  not  in  any  way  understand,  and  thus  they 
were  kept  from  the  true  joys  of  a  manly  and 
genuine  religious  experience.  There  was  also 
a  system  of  repression  by  which  the  children 
were  forever  being  prohibited  from  doing  some 
thing,  and  this  hardened  and  discouraged  them. 
This  constant  prohibition  did  not  stop  as  Dr. 
Bushnell  said  "with  the  ten  commandments, 
like  the  word  of  Sinai,  but  it  kept  the  thunder 
up."  His  desire  was  that  children  should  be 
trained  in  such  a  way  that,  like  Richard  Baxter, 
they  might  never  remember  the  time  when 
they  began  to  be  religious.  To  effect  this 
training  it  was  necessary  to  emphasize  the  or- 


296      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

ganic  relations  of  the  family  and  to  set  forth 
the  truth  that  the  nurture  of  the  soul  is  to  begin 
with  the  nurture  of  the  body,  for  the  "child 
after  birth  is  still  within  the  matrix  of  the 
parental  life  and  will  be  more  or  less  for  many 
years."  Kindness  and  sweetness  were  as 
necessary  in  the  home  as  food  and  clothing ; 
and  a  rebuke  was  administered  to  many  par 
ents  when  he  intimated  that  persons  might  be 
noted  for  their  piety  and  still  be  very  disagree 
able.  On  the  other  hand  love  was  not  sufficient 
when  it  was  unintelligent,  for  he  pointed  out 
that  mere  natural  affection  was  nothing  more 
than  incompetency  as  an  equipment  for  the 
parental  office. 

The  whole  trend  of  "  Christian  Nurture  "  was 
so  far  away  from  the  established  methods  of 
dealing  with  children  that  it  seemed  to  many 
the  manifesto  of  a  dangerous  revolution.  With 
the  suggestion  of  a  set  of  playthings  on  the 
Sabbath,  though  the  toys  were  to  be  sacred 
ones,  representing  points  of  religious  history, 
Bushnell's  reputation  for  orthodoxy  was  gone, 
and  he  became  free  game  for  the  attacks  of 
the  country  brethren. 


HORACE  BUSHNELL  297 

On  top  of  this  came  his  next  important  theo 
logical  book,  "  God  in  Christ,"  containing  two  ad 
dresses,  one  delivered  at  the  Harvard  Divinity 
School,  and  another  at  Yale,  prefaced  by  an  essay 
on  "  Language."  The  whole  book  was  free  in 
its  treatment  of  religious  doctrine,  and  was  open 
to  the  charge  of  unsoundness  because  of  its  ob 
scurity  and  low  estimate  of  human  language  as 
a  vehicle  for  theological  definition,  as  well  as  an 
apparent  lapse  into  Unitarianism.  Boldness  of 
criticism  was  evident  in  the  position  that  lan 
guage  is  a  mere  sign  and  image  of  the  thought, 
and  not  an  equivalent  of  truth,  and  that  the 
multiplication  of  opinions  and  sects  was  the 
result  of  false  views  of  language.  The  positive 
Christian  conception  that  dominated  the  book 
was  the  reflection  of  his  own  thought  which 
had  deepened  and  become  intense,  as  he  set 
forth  Christ  as  the  indwelling  life  of  the  soul, 
the  new  creating  power  of  righteousness  for 
humanity.  The  divinity  of  Christ  and  the 
atonement  were  the  two  principal  themes ;  and 
he  contended  that  his  views  were  a  return  to 
a  true  orthodoxy  anterior  to  the  New  England 
thought  which  was  comparatively  new.  This 


298      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN  LETTERS 

was  a  favorite  position  with  him  which  he  as 
serted  again  and  again  in  "Vicarious  Sacrifice" 
and  elsewhere,  as  he  expounded  the  views  of 
the  early  fathers  and  such  theologians  as 
Anselm.  "I  seem  to  myself,"  he  wrote,  "to 
assert  nothing  which  is  not  substantial  ortho 
doxy, —  that  which  contains  the  real  moment 
of  all  our  orthodox  formulas  unabridged."  This 
was  not  enough,  however,  for  many  of  his  fellow- 
ministers,  who  in  reviews  and  letters  and  public 
speech  disputed  his  right  to  be  recognized  as 
a  member  of  their  association.  The  attacks 
that  came  from  the  New  York  Evangelist  and 
Princeton  Reviezv  soon  focussed  in  the  action 
of  the  Hartford  Central  Association,  where 
attempts  were  made  to  present  Dr.  Bushnell 
for  trial  on  the  charge  of  heresy ;  and  this  fail 
ing,  a  series  of  subsequent  efforts  was  made 
by  the  association  of  "  Fairfield  West "  in  its 
endeavors  to  force  the  General  Association  of 
Connecticut  to  discipline  the  heretic.  But  Dr. 
Bushnell  had  strong  friends,  among  them  being 
Dr.  Porter,  afterward  President  of  Yale  Col 
lege,  who  upheld  his  right  to  free  discussion 
and  a  place  in  the  association.  During  this 


HORACE   BUSHNELL  299 

very  trying  time  of  criticism,  for  the  most  part 
Dr.  Bushnell  kept  silent,  following  his  pub 
lished  plan  not  to  be  drawn  into  argument, 
knowing  that  there  would  be  a  religious  con 
troversy,  and  consequently  asserting,  "  I  adver 
tise  it  beforehand,  to  prevent  a  misconstruction 
of  my  silence,  that  I  am  silenced  now  on  the 
publication  of  my  volume." 

It  was  not  that  Bushnell  was  desirous  of 
denying  the  accepted  belief  of  the  churches, 
but  when  it  conflicted  with  what  he  considered 
the  rational  common  sense  or  even  emotional 
view  of  the  doctrine  or  the  teaching,  his  nature 
revolted.  The  truth  must  be  as  real  in  man's 
nature  as  in  a  book,  and  the  book,  even  if  most 
sacred,  is  only  an  imperfect  medium  for  the 
transmission  of  the  truth  to  the  human  soul. 
The  words  were  mere  suggestions  of  something 
greater  than  the  words  ;  or,  as  he  expressed  it, 
Christianity  was  "  a  gift  to  the  imagination," 
as  well  as  to  the  faith  and  the  reason.  The 
emotional  and  poetic  part  of  life  must  be  ap 
pealed  to,  and  when  aroused  it  can  enjoy  the 
revelation  which  has  been  given.  This  imagi 
native  and  poetic  treatment  is  well  illustrated 


300     THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN  LETTERS 

throughout  all  his  books,  but  especially  in  the 
"  Moral  Uses  of  Dark  Things,"  wherein  he 
discovers  the  uses  of  such  dark  things  as  bad 
government,  of  plagues  and  pestilences,  of  in 
sanity,  of  the  changes  of  life,  and  of  things 
"unsightful  and  disgustful."  While  evil  is  con 
sidered  necessary  in  order  to  understand  the 
good,  as  in  the  case  of  bad  government,  "it  is 
simply  letting  society  and  man  be  what  they 
are  to  show  what  they  are,"  yet  there  are  many 
fanciful  interpretations  which  can  only  be  con 
sidered  true  in  the  way  of  analogy  or  in  illus 
tration.  There  is  a  beautiful  exhibition  of  this 
power  in  "  Vicarious  Sacrifice,"  where  he  urges 
that  wherever  there  is  love  there  must  be 
vicarious  sacrifice,  and  he  finds  the  truth  of 
the  doctrine,  not  in  any  thought  of  a  debt  paid 
or  a  measured  amount  of  suffering  borne,  but 
in  the  universality  of  the  love  which  contains 
the  sacrifice.  "  There  is  a  Gethsemane  hid  in  all 
love,"  he  says,  "and  when  the  fit  occasion  comes, 
no  matter  how  great  and  high  the  subject  may 
be,  its  heavy  groaning  will  be  heard  —  even  as 
it  was  in  Christ";  or  again,  "There  is  a  cross 
in  God  before  the  wood  is  seen  in  Calvary." 


HORACE  BUSHNELL  301 

His  devotion  to  truth  was  one  of  the  main 
characteristics  of  his  life,  but  it  was  a  truth 
which  must  have  had  an  historical  continuity. 
He  did  not  desire  to  feel  that  it  originated  with 
him,  but  that  it  could  be  verified  in  the  best 
thought  of  the  early  church  fathers,  —  an  ortho 
doxy  not  of  one  century  but  of  all  the  Christian 
centuries.  Then,  this  truth  must  be  made  real 
in  life,  and  until  it  was  thus  vitalized  and 
embodied  in  the  form  of  corporate  action,  he 
never  could  rest  satisfied.  In  his  political,  as 
well  as  his  religious  thinking,  the  activity  and 
perseverance  of  his  mind  were  shown  in  the 
need  of  constant  expression  until  the  result 
was  obtained,  either  the  evil  was  rectified,  or 
the  book  was  sent  forth  on  its  mission. 

The  ruggedness  of  his  nature  was  softened 
often  by  a  delightful  play  of  humor.  This 
saved  him  many  depressing  moments,  and 
lightened  up  the  gloom  of  an  irritating  circum 
stance.  Of  two  ministers  who  were  colleagues, 
he  said  their  relation  was  unscriptural  because 
"it  was  forbidden  to  yoke  an  ox  with  an  ass." 
When  the  music  was  criticised  he  was  provoked 
and  exclaimed,  "It's  worship!  and  you  might 


302      THE   CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

as  well  criticise  the  gait  of  the  scapegoat  that 
bears  away  the  sins  of  the  people."  Indulging 
himself  in  sarcasm  occasionally  at  the  expense 
of  a  shallow  preacher,  he  said,  when  told  by 
some  one  that  he  had  known  him  twenty  years 
ago  as  a  boy  who  did  chores  for  his  board, 
"That  is  what  he  is  doing  now."  This  play 
fulness  used  to  take  him  sometimes  when  he 
smoked  in  later  life,  and  he  would  announce 
his  intention  to  his  friend  by  saying,  "  Now, 
come,  let  us  sin  a  little." 

The  life  of  Horace  Bushnell  reached  out  in 
so  many  different  directions,  touching  many 
interests  with  enthusiasm,  that  a  final  judgment 
on  him  is  difficult  to  pronounce.  That  he  had 
genius  no  one  will  deny ;  that  he  had  applica 
tion  is  evident ;  that  he  had  consecration  is 
assumed  ;  but  what  he  did  have  supremely  was 
creative  imagination.  It  entered  the  sphere  of 
politics  as  well  as  religion,  and  in  terms  of  brill 
iant  metaphor  presented  the  central  truth  of 
whatever  system  he  was  dealing  with  so  vividly 
and  attractively  that  men  were  fascinated  by 
its  greatness.  The  very  vagueness  of  definition 
often  was  an  aid  to  the  effect,  as  vapor  softens 


HORACE  BUSHNELL  303 

the  sharpness  of  outline  and  diffuses  the  light. 
His  boldness  forced  what  he  had  to  say  into 
the  very  faces  of  his  opponents.  He  founded 
no  school,  nor  did  he  collect  a  band  of  disciples, 
but  stood  out  as  one  man  who  had  been  moved 
to  unburden  his  soul  to  the  men  of  his  genera 
tion,  urging  them  to  prize  national  honor,  to 
legislate  for  the  benefit  of  a  growing  civiliza 
tion,  to  live  as  becomes  men,  and  to  have  faith 
in  their  own  souls,  in  their  fellow-men,  in  God, 
to  trust  the  future  as  one  derives  inspiration 
from  the  past,  and  to  ennoble  the  whole  of  life 
by  a  reasonable  and  holy  service. 

The  aim  of  his  life-work,  as  Dr.  Austin 
Phelps  expresses  it,  was  that  of  discovery : 
"  He  was  a  looker  on,  and  up,  to  the  firmament 
of  truth ;  and  whatever  he  saw  there  he  pro 
claimed  to  the  waiting  multitudes  below." 


CHAPTER  IX 

HENRY   WARD    BEECHER 

HENRY  WARD  BEECHER  did  not  give  early 
the  promise  of  his  future.  "  He  had  precisely 
the  organization  which  often  passes  for  dulness 
in  boyhood,"  wrote  Mrs.  Stowe;  "he  had  a 
great  deficiency  in  verbal  memory,  a  deficiency 
marked  in  him  through  life ;  he  was  excessively 
sensitive  to  praise  and  blame,  extremely  diffi 
dent.  .  .  .  His  utterance  was  thick  and  indis 
tinct."  But  the  association  with  his  clever 
brothers  and  sisters  and  the  rugged  personality 
of  his  father,  Lyman  Beecher,  one  of  the  great 
preachers  and  theologians  of  his  time,  rubbed 
off  the  uncouthness  of  youth  and  developed  his 
talents,  especially  in  theological  directions,  for 
the  daily  discussions  of  the  household  clustered 
around  free  will  and  predestination,  even  when 
the  father  sawed  the  family  wood  in  the  cellar, 
304 


HENRY   WARD    BEECHER  305 

calling  up  through  the  floor  a  new  argument 
to  his  son  above.  When  Lyman  Beecher  was 
accused  of  heresy  by  Dr.  Wilson,  an  advocate 
of  that  distillation  called  "  Scotch-Irish  Presby 
terian  Calvinistic  fatalism,"  the  Beecher  family 
spent  their  waking  moments  in  discussing  total 
depravity  and  Scripture  inspiration.  While 
these  early  surroundings  gave  a  theological 
trend  to  Henry  Ward's  thoughts  and  sharpened 
his  wits,  they  also  gave  him  a  surfeit  of  doc 
trinal  controversy,  and  explain  in  some  measure 
the  absence  of  dogma  from  his  preaching  and 
teaching.  In  college,  phrenology  seems  to 
have  claimed  more  of  his  time  than  theology. 
Associated  with  Fowler,  the  prophet  of  the  new 
science,  he  used  to  deliver  lectures,  which  at 
least  gave  him  some  training  in  public  speak 
ing,  if  it  did  not  gain  adherents  to  the  system 
of  character  reading  by  cranial  protuberances. 
His  study  of  elocution,  his  athletic  training,  and 
the  friendship  of  his  fellow-students,  together 
with  general  reading,  and  a  genuine  religious 
experience  were  his  preparation  for  his  career 
in  the  ministry,  which  soon  became  inevitable 
to  an  eager,  thoughtful,  full-blooded  man,  who 


306     THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

desired  to  do  something  in  the  world,  and  that 
too  for  his  fellow-men. 

The  first  parish  was  at  Lawrenceburg,  —  a 
little  town  in  the  wilderness  of  Ohio.  "  I  was 
sexton  of  my  own  church  at  that  time,"  he  after 
ward  said ;  "  there  were  no  lamps  there,  so  I 
bought  some ;  and  I  filled  them  and  lit  them. 
I  swept  the  church  and  lighted  my  own  fire. 
I  did  not  ring  the  bell,  because  there  was  none 
to  ring."  Here  he  learned  to  know  men  inti 
mately,  their  needs  and  peculiarities ;  and  in  the 
sermons  wrought  out  by  hard  work,  he  was  un 
consciously  laying  the  foundation  for  his  future 
strength.  He  had  already  made  some  progress 
as  a  journalist,  serving  for  a  time  as  a  writer 
on  the  Cincinnati  Journal.  It  was  significant 
that  his  editorials  on  the  pro-slavery  riots  were 
copied  into  various  other  papers,  because  these 
were  among  the  earliest  signs  of  his  defence 
of  the  negro.  Two  years  of  service  in  Law 
renceburg  were  followed  by  eight  years  in  Indi 
anapolis.  He  began  here  "to  preach  a  little," 
as  he  described  it,  his  reputation  growing 
rapidly.  The  ministry  in  Indianapolis  was  in 
quality  like  the  life-work  in  Brooklyn.  The 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  307 

same  characteristics  of  thought  and  activity 
are  to  be  seen  in  the  earlier  period  as  in  the 
later  one.  The  preaching  was  vital  and  drew 
the  people  to  hear  him ;  he  dealt  with  public 
questions  as  well  as  Scriptural  ones ;  he  was 
informal  and  direct,  homely  in  style  often,  but 
convincing ;  vigorous  in  his  denunciation  of  the 
sins  of  the  day.  The  two  literary  remains  of 
the  earlier  work  are  the  "  Lecture  to  Young 
Men,"  and  the  articles  on  agricultural  subjects 
which  he  wrote  for  the  Indiana  Journal,  then  for 
the  Western  Farmer  and  Gardener,  and  finally 
collected  into  the  interesting  volume,  "  Pleasant 
Talk  about  Fruits,  Flowers,  and  Farming." 

But  this  was  early  work.  When  Beecher 
came  to  the  newly  organized  Plymouth  Church 
in  1847,  ne  came  to  his  throne.  From  this  pul 
pit,  with  scarcely  any  interruption,  he  preached 
his  famous  sermons  for  forty  years.  In  his 
first  sermon,  on  October  10,  1847,  he  out 
lined  what  should  be  the  character  of  the 
preaching,  its  wide  scope,  dealing  with  every 
moral  question  of  the  time,  questions  of 
national  importance,  slavery,  war,  temperance, 
declaring  his  chief  purpose  to  make  his  minis- 


308      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

try  "a  ministry  of  Christ."  He  lived  up 
to  his  early  promise.  His  pulpit  was  never 
silent  when  the  people  were  listening  for  the 
voice  of  a  prophet  or  a  guide.  They  learned 
that  absolute  frankness  and  independence, 
sympathy  with  the  oppressed  and  with  their 
own  sorrows,  were  to  be  found  in  Plymouth 
pulpit.  So  the  people  of  America  went  to 
hear  him  and  read  his  sermons,  which  were 
printed  both  in  America  and  England.  One 
of  the  attractions  of  a  visit  to  New  York  was 
the  chance  of  hearing  Henry  Ward  Beecher. 
The  Fulton  ferry-boat  was  crowded  on  Sun 
day  mornings  with  a  company  of  eager 
strangers,  who  got  off  the  car  in  Brooklyn 
when  the  conductor,  knowing  their  errand, 
called  out  "  Beecher  "  instead  of  the  name  of 
the  street.  When  they  entered  the  church, 
there  were  generally  three  thousand  persons 
already  seated.  The  continuous  popularity  of 
the  preacher  for  such  a  long  period  of  time 
was  a  remarkable  testimony  to  his  power  as 
a  speaker,  to  his  knowledge  of  men,  to  the 
force  of  his  convictions,  and  the  truth  which 
he  presented  for  their  acceptance. 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  309 

To  account  for  his  power  and  to  see  the 
reasons  for  it,  one  must  remember  that  he 
made  public  speaking  the  specialty  of  his  life, 
and  while  he  did  many  other  things,  he  made 
them  all  contribute  to  his  work  as  a  preacher. 
"  I  am,  in  the  providence  of  God,  so  circum 
stanced  in  reference  to  public  speaking,  which 
seems  to  be  my  specialty,"  he  said,  "that  I 
put  my  whole  strength  into  that  and  give  up 
everything  else  to  it."  The  ordinary  duties 
of  the  parish  minister  he  put  into  other  hands 
after  his  great  influence  began  to  grow  in 
Plymouth  pulpit,  preferring  even  not  to  make 
calls  upon  the  sick  or  afflicted.  He  was  always 
in  the  homiletic  frame  of  mind,  that  is,  seeking 
facts  and  knowledge  with  the  ulterior  purpose 
of  using  them  in  the  pulpit  or  on  the  platform. 
When  on  Saturdays  he  left  his  study  to  wander 
about  the  shops  and  factories  of  New  York, 
examining  jewels  at  Tiffany's,  or  watching  a 
shoemaker  drive  his  pegs,  it  was  with  the  idea 
of  getting  vivid  impressions  from  which  he 
might  form  illustrations  to  make  his  sermons 
fresh  and  interesting.  He  studied  men  as 
much  as  books,  always  going  to  a  recognized 


310      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

authority  for  first-hand  information,  which  he 
absorbed  at  once  and  made  his  own.  While 
the  immediate  preparation  for  the  Sunday  ser 
mons  was  brief,  consuming  a  few  hours  after 
breakfast  on  Sunday  morning  and  a  short  time 
in  the  afternoon  for  the  evening  sermon,  his 
general  preparation  was  continuous.  Every 
thing  he  read,  every  incident  of  the  day, 
chance  conversation,  as  well  as  serious  study, 
all  went  into  the  sub-conscious  manufactory 
where  the  sermon  was  in  process  of  making. 
Memory  for  facts,  not  for  words,  and  quick 
application  of  ideas,  with  a  keen  sense  of 
what  was  appropriate,  made  it  possible  for 
him  to  be  ready  at  all  times  to  gather  together 
his  thoughts  and  present  them  with  clearness, 
and  as  his  mind  kindled,  with  force  and  elo 
quence.  The  fertility  of  his  mind  was  such 
that  one  of  his  friends  thought  "he  could  fill 
two  octavo  pages  with  the  description  of  a 
cobweb,  and  yet  there  would  be  much  more 
than  mere  words  in  the  description." 

Mr.  Beecher's  fine  presence  and  sympathetic 
voice  added  to  the  effect  of  his  sermons. 
Sometimes  his  manner  was  dramatic.  After 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  31! 

having    spoken    in    a    conversational    way   he 
would   warm    up    to    his    subject    and    uncon 
sciously  act  the  scene  he  was  describing.     But 
on  the  whole  it  was  the  earnestness  and  force 
of  a  great  personality  rather  than  the  manner 
of   the  delivery  that  held  the   people.      Once, 
when   he    held  the  chains  that  had  bound  the 
hands  of  John  Brown,  and  hurled  them  upon 
the    floor,    stamping     upon    them,    the    effect 
was  tremendous.      Occasionally  in  reading  the 
Scripture   he   would   use    a    dramatic    gesture. 
During  troublous  times,  when  Mr.  Beecher  had 
enemies,  he    was   reading   the    account    of    St. 
Paul's  shipwreck  at  Melita  and  the  viper  which 
fastened  itself  upon  the  hand   of   the  apostle; 
continuing,  he  read,   "  He  shook  off  the  beast 
into  the  fire,  and  felt  no  harm;'  accompanying 
the  words  with  such  a  gesture  that  all  knew  he 
meant  he  would  thus  treat  his  enemies. 

Dr.  Richard  R.  Storrs  well  analyzed  Mr. 
Beecher's  power  as  a  preacher  when  at  the 
twenty-fifth  anniversary  of  Plymouth  Church 
in  1872  he  said:  "It  used  to  amuse  me  and 
provoke  me,  years  ago,  when  men  would  speak 
as  if  his  strength  lay  in  some  one  thing ;  in  his 


312      THE   CLERGY   IN    AMERICAN    LETTERS 

voice,  perhaps,  or  in  his  gesture,  or  his  power 
of    illustration,    or   something    else.  .  .  .     You 
know  as  well  as   I   do,  that  his   power   comes 
from  many  sources.     It  is  like  a  rushing,  royal 
river,  which   has   its  birthplace   in  a  thousand 
springs."     When  one  says  that  it  is  due  to  a 
vitalized  mind  or  immense  common-sense,  sym 
pathy  with    men,  mental  sensibility,  or  animal 
vigor,  it  must  be  conceded  that  these  qualities 
were  all  present  in  a  remarkable  degree;   but 
beyond  all  these,  there  was  the  unanalyzed  force 
of  a  character  and  heart  that  gave  from  out  its 
own    fulness   the   light    and    conviction   which 
helped  the  men  who  heard  him.     His  profound 
faith   in    righteousness   was    communicated    to 
others  and  it  abode  in  them.     The  unconven- 
tionality    of    the    discourse    attracted   attention 
by  its    freshness  and   startling  qualities.      He 
would  take  his  illustrations  from  every  possi 
ble    quarter,    but    those    that    dealt    with    the 
common   life  of  man,  the  affections  and  daily 
work   of    the    people,    were   the   most    in   use. 
If   there   was    one    quality  above  another  that 
predominated  in  his  preaching  it  was  a  vivid 
ness  of  description  that  made  his   hearers  see 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  313 

what  was  in  his  own  mind,  thus  making 
them  live  with  him  through  the  experiences 
that  he  related.  Whenever  humor  was  used  it 
was  not  for  its  own  sake,  but  it  bubbled  up  to 
illustrate  the  truth  or  the  fact.  Of  beauty  there 
was  no  absence,  many  of  his  descriptions 
being  filled  with  poetic  appreciation  of  art  and 
music  and  literature. 

Not  only  Mr.  Beecher's  character  and  attain 
ments  gave  the  force  to  his  preaching  and  lit 
erary  work,  but  the  topics  he  dealt  with  were 
popular.  He  was  the  exponent  of  the  new 
theology,  —  not  dogmatic  theology,  but  a  life 
theology.  He  appealed  to  those  who  had  lost 
sympathy  with  the  hard-and-fast  discussions  of 
dry  orthodoxy;  yet,  while  retaining  the  Evan 
gelical  fervor  and  belief  in  the  essence  of  the 
older  doctrines,  he  tried  to  put  new  life  into 
them  and  make  them  real  by  new  interpreta 
tions  and  adaptations  to  present  needs.  He 
disclaimed  the  title  of  systematic  theologian, 
and  yet  he  had  a  system  of  his  own,  having  for 
its  cardinal  doctrines  the  Fatherhood  of  God 
and  the  Brotherhood  of  man.  When  men 
everywhere  were  beginning  to  feel  after  these 


314     THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

truths,  it  was  no  surprise  that  they  gladly 
received  them  when  presented  by  the  eloquence 
and  conviction  of  Mr.  Beecher.  What  is  called 
the  new  theology  found  in  him  a  warm  advo 
cate  and  skilful  expositor. 

Another  subject  which  early  attracted  his 
attention  and  close  study  was  evolution.  This 
interest  was  doubtless  increased  by  his  love  for 
nature  and  the  processes  of  natural  law,  but 
more  especially  arose  from  eagerness  to  ex 
amine  new  theories  with  the  hope  of  discover 
ing  truth  to  be  used  in  its  application  to  religion. 
He  read  with  great  care  Herbert  Spencer  and 
Haeckel,  studying  other  well-known  scientific 
writers;  and  having  made  up  his  mind  that  a 
great  discovery  had  been  made  in  the  doctrine 
of  evolution,  he  was  among  the  first  to  accept 
and  preach  with  boldness  its  essential  princi 
ples.  While  other  ministers  were  alarmed  at 
the  supposed  conflict  between  religion  and 
science,  he  saw  the  harmony  between  the  two. 
While  others  condemned  the  new  thought,  he 
hailed  it  with  the  enthusiasm  of  a  new  convic 
tion.  The  sermons  preached  in  1885  on  evo 
lution  attracted  much  attention,  and  were 


HENRY  WARD   BEECHER  315 

afterward  collected  into  two  volumes  called 
"  Evolution  and  Religion,"  discussing  the  bear 
ings  of  Evolutionary  Philosophy  on  the  doctrines 
of  Evangelical  Christianity.  "  I  am  for  liberty 
of  knowledge,"  he  asserted,  "for  liberty  in 
philosophy,  in  spite  of  organization  and  prece 
dents  and  all  that  is  past." 

The  discussion  of  evolution  was  carried  on 
in  the  two  books  with  much  learning  and 
clear  thinking.  In  the  chapter  on  "The  Two 
Revelations,"  the  main  contention  is  made  that 
God's  ways  are  to  be  seen  in  nature  as  well  as 
in  the  Bible,  for  "  Science  is  but  the  decipher 
ing  of  God's  thought  as  revealed  in  the  struc 
ture  of  this  world."  The  argument  from 
Design  was  seen  to  be  affected  by  the  con 
ception  of  development,  but  only  in  giving  it 
a  grander  scope.  Minute  adaptations  of  means 
to  ends  which  had  appealed  to  the  older  writers 
of  apologetics  from  the  time  of  Paley's  reason 
ing  about  the  celebrated  watch  might  lose  some 
of  their  force,  but  the  signs  of  a  universal 
progress  toward  the  improvement  of  the  spe 
cies  and  the  unfolding  of  world-movements 
were  asserted  to  be  a  truer  confirmation  of 


3l6      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

design  than  the  multiplication  of  little  special 
examples.  "  Design  by  wholesale  is  grander 
than  design  by  retail."  Continuing  the  same 
thought,  he  reasoned  that  "  if  it  be  evidence 
of  design  in  creation  that  God  adapted  one 
single  flower  to  its  place  and  functions,  is  it 
not  greater  evidence  if  there  is  a  system  of 
such  adaptations  going  on  from  eternity  ? " 
So  the  conclusion  is  reached  that  "  Evolution 
instead  of  obliterating  the  evidence  of  divine 
design  has  lifted  it  to  a  higher  plane  and  made 
it  more  sublime  than  it  was  ever  contemplated 
to  be  under  the  old  reasonings."  The  differ 
ence  between  the  German  and  English  scien 
tists  did  not  escape  observation,  the  former 
being  by  far  the  most  materialistic,  while  the 
latter  prepared  the  way  for  a  rational  philoso 
phy  of  the  spiritual  in  nature  and  life.  There 
is  much  discrimination  in  the  difference  dis 
covered  between  these  two  streams  of  ten 
dency.  The  ultimate  influence  on  religion  was 
no  less  clearly  perceived  in  the  reconstruction 
that  would  be  necessary  both  in  theology 
and  the  interpretation  of  Scripture,  but  the  re 
casting  of  older  thought  was  willingly  allowed, 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  317 

because  Mr.  Beechcr  believed  that  the  new 
view  would  give  religion  "  a  character  such 
as  has  never  yet  been  known  in  the  world  at 
large."  The  light  of  humor  occasionally  flashes 
through  the  pages,  having  also  the  force  of  an 
argument :  "  We  need  not  be  afraid  of  getting 
rid  of  original  sin,  because  we  can  get  all  the 
actual  transgression  that  the  world  needs  to 
take  its  place."  These  volumes  on  evolution, 
by  the  calm  survey  of  the  situation  and  the 
hopeful  view  of  the  outcome  of  the  contro 
versy  between  science  and  certain  forms  of 
belief,  marked  in  their  day  an  important  stage 
in  the  relations  existing  between  the  deepest 
religious  thought  and  the  achievement  of 
modern  science.  That  they  were  read  by  the 
people  as  much  as  by  the  students  is  an 
additional  reason  why  they  may  be  considered 
as  having  played  an  important  part  in  the 
reconstruction  of  American  religious  ideas. 

Nowhere,  however,  are  Mr.  Beecher's  thoughts 
on  preaching,  its  aim  and  power,  so  fully  set 
forth,  as  in  the  remarkable  series  of  volumes 
containing  the  lectures  delivered  at  Yale  Col 
lege  in  the  three  years  beginning  with  1871. 


3l8      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN    LETTERS 

The  Lyman  Beecher  Lectureship  on  Preaching 
was  founded  by  a  parishioner  of  Plymouth 
Church ;  and  it  was  natural  that  Mr.  Beecher 
should  be  appointed  the  first  lecturer,  an  office 
which  he  filled  with  satisfaction  to  all  con 
cerned,  and  set  the  ideal  of  the  lectureship  so 
high  that  those  who  have  succeeded  him,  at 
tempting  to  attain  to  it,  have  produced  some  of 
the  noblest  contributions  to  American  theologi 
cal  literature.  The  lectures  are  informal  talks 
to  the  students  rather  than  elaborate  or  studied 
addresses.  They  touch  upon  a  great  range  of 
subjects,  interesting  not  only  to  the  clergy  but 
to  the  general  reader.  They  exhibit  Mr. 
Beecher's  power  at  its  best ;  clear,  forcible, 
brilliant,  with  the  unexpectedness  of  great 
thoughts  bursting  out  from  the  even  current 
of  his  theme,  and  a  sympathy  with  human 
affairs  deep  and  abiding.  There  is  no  effort 
apparent  in  their  delivery ;  and,  as  was  his 
method  of  preparation,  being  hardly  outlined 
the  day  before  they  were  given,  they  caused 
him  no  effort  except  the  final  one  of  creation  at 
the  moment  as  they  flowed  from  his  well-stored 
mind  and  varied  experience.  He  often  allowed 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  319 

himself  to  wander  on  at  will,  recalling  past 
incidents  in  his  own  and  his  father's  life,  telling 
an  anecdote  to  illustrate  his  point,  or  forcing 
a  truth  home  by  the  power  of  an  aroused  im 
agination.  Mr.  Beecher's  characteristic  method 
of  saying  clever  things  was  like  his  advice  on 
the  subject  of  humor  in  the  pulpit — if  they  came 
naturally,  use  them,  but  never  spring  them  on 
the  audience  for  the  sake  of  making  an  impres 
sion. 

On  the  subject  of  making  people  laugh  in 
church,  he  said,  "  If  I  can  make  them  laugh, 
I  do  not  thank  anybody  for  the  next  move ; 
I  will  make  them  cry.  Did  you  ever  see  a 
woman  carrying  a  pan  of  milk  quite  full,  and 
it  slops  over  on  one  side,  that  it  did  not  imme 
diately  slop  over  on  the  other  also  ? "  When 
speaking  of  health  as  necessary  to  public  speak 
ing,  and  urging  the  importance  of  sleep,  he 
made  his  point  by  asserting  that  "  If  you  do 
not  sleep,  first  or  last,  your  audience  will,  and 
therefore  it  is  necessary  that  you  should  sleep 
for  them,  that  they  may  keep  awake  to  hear 
what  you  may  have  to  say."  Of  some  sermons 
he  said  they  were  built  like  the  ships  down  in 


320     THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Maine :  "  They  build  them  by  the  mile,  and 
when  they  have  an  order  they  cut  off  so  much, 
round  up  a  stern  and  a  bow.  Thus  some  ser 
mons  seem  to  have  been  built  by  the  mile. 
There  seems  to  be  no  earthly  reason  why  the 
preacher  should  begin  in  one  place  rather  than 
another."  When  urging  a  certain  healthful 
bravery  in  preaching,  warning  against  a  man's 
preaching  in  a  low  and  feeble  voice,  each  one 
of  his  sentences  seeming  like  "a  poor  scared 
mouse  running  for  its  hole,"  he  stated  that  "  a 
congregation  knows  when  a  minister  is  afraid 
of  them  just  as  well  as  a  horse  knows  that  his 
driver  is  afraid  of  him."  In  preferring  the  use 
of  good  Saxon  words  instead  of  scholastic  dic 
tion,  he  says  :  "  The  plain  language  gives  bell- 
notes  which  ring  out  suggestions  to  the  popular 
heart.  There  are  words  that  men  have  heard 
when  boys  at  home,  around  the  hearth  and  the 
table,  words  that  are  full  of  father  and  of 
mother,  and  full  of  common  and  domestic 
life.  .  .  .  For,  after  all,  simple  language  is 
loaded  down  and  stained  through  with  the  best 
testimonies  and  memories  of  life."  He  relates 
how  one  day  his  father,  Lyman  Beecher,  came 


HENRY   WARD    BEECHER  321 

home  after  the  Sunday  service  and  said,  "It 
seems  to  me  I  never  made  a  worse  sermon  than 
I  did  this  morning."  "  Why,  father,"  said  I,  "  I 
never  heard  you  preach  so  loud  in  all  my  life." 
"That's  the  way,"  he  said;  "I  always  halloa 
when  I  haven't  anything  to  say." 

These  are  illustrations  of  the  way  in  which 
bright  things  are  scattered  throughout  the 
lectures.  In  the  main  they  are  serious  dis 
cussions  of  many  vital  questions.  The  first 
series  dealt  with  the  personal  elements  that 
bear  important  relation  to  preaching,  such  as 
the  qualifications  of  the  preacher,  elements 
in  oratory,  rhetorical  drill,  health  as  related 
to  preaching,  with  the  last  lecture  on  "  Love 
the  Central  Element  of  the  Christian  Min 
istry  " ;  the  second  series  had  more  to  say 
about  the  conduct  of  public  worship,  prayer 
meetings,  and  social  gatherings,  music  in  wor 
ship,  and  methods  of  dealing  with  new  fields 
of  labor ;  the  third  year  was  devoted  more  to 
doctrinal  discussion  as  to  the  best  ways  of 
using  Christian  doctrines  in  their  relation  to 
the  needs  of  individual  dispositions  and  the 
wants  of  communities. 


322      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

The  author  of  the  "  History  of  Journalism 
in  America "  refers  to  Henry  Ward  Beecher 
as  one  of  the  few  great  editors  of  the  United 
States.  This  judgment  is  confirmed  by  an 
examination  into  his  experiences  as  an  editor 
and  writer  for  newspapers.  He  felt  the  size 
and  importance  of  the  audience  reached 
through  the  means  of  journalism,  and  early 
used  his  pen  to  influence  a  vast  unknown 
number  of  readers.  His  earliest  efforts  were 
as  editor  for  five  months  of  the  Cincinnati 
Journal,  an  organ  of  the  Presbyterian  church, 
in  which  he  wrote  editorials  against  slavery ; 
and  when  a  band  of  pro-slavery  rioters 
destroyed  Birney's  press,  he  was  sworn  in 
as  a  special  policeman,  and  carried  a  weapon 
which  he  determined  to  use  if  occasion  re 
quired  it.  Next  he  wrote  the  articles  on 
farming  in  the  Western  Farmer  and  Gardener. 
Soon  after  his  arrival  in  Brooklyn  the  editors 
of  the  New  York  Independent  enlisted  his 
services  in  the  cause  of  freedom,  and  though 
the  religious  press  of  the  country  was  at  that 
time  silent  on  the  subject  of  slavery,  he  wrote 
articles  of  such  power  that  they  attracted 


HENRY   WARD   BEECH ER  323 

general  attention  to  the  stand  taken  by  the 
New  York  Independent.  It  is  related  that  his 
famous  article  "  Shall  We  Compromise  ? "  was 
read  to  the  dying  statesman  Calhoun.  "  Read 
that  again,"  said  Calhoun ;  "  that  fellow  under 
stands  his  subject.  He  will  be  heard  from 
again.  He  has  gone  to  the  bottom."  "Shall 
We  Compromise?"  was  written  February  21, 
1850,  on  the  propositions  of  Henry  Clay,  and 
boldly  stated  the  moral  issue :  "  Let  no  man 
suppose  that  the  contentions  which  now  agi 
tate  the  land  have  sprung  from  the  rash  pro 
cedure  of  a  few  men  —  hot-heads  either  of 
the  North  or  of  the  South.  We  are  in  the 
midst  of  a  collision,  not  of  men,  but  of  prin 
ciples  and  political  institutions."  It  was  clearly 
pointed  out  that  one  of  the  great  differences 
between  the  North  and  the  South  was  in  the 
theory  of  labor,  the  North  regarding  labor  as 
voluntary  and  honorable,  while  the  South 
looked  upon  it  as  a  disgraceful  necessity  to 
be  confined  to  a  subservient  class,  —  thus 
marking  the  "vital  distinguishing  elements  of 
two  radically  different  governments,  an  Aris 
tocracy  and  a  Democracy,"  which  in  time  must 


324      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

come  into  conflict,  because  such  principles 
will  determine  the  family  institutions,  public 
opinion,  and  the  very  natures  of  the  com 
munities.  To  discuss  the  anti-slavery  question 
in  editorials,  Mr.  Beecher  did  not  rely  on  his 
general  knowledge  of  the  subject  and  his 
stirred  emotions,  but  he  made  special  studies 
of  Story  on  the  Constitution,  Kent's  "  Com 
mentaries,"  and  Lieber's  "  Civil  Liberty  and 
Self-Government,"  so  that,  when  in  his  usual 
style  of  writing  he  eagerly  threw  off  page 
after  page  just  in  time  for  the  boy  to  take 
them  to  the  printer,  leaving  to  other  hands 
correction  and  proof-reading,  he  spoke  with 
authority  as  well  as  with  strength. 

After  his  withdrawal  from  the  Independent 
he  became  editor  of  a  paper  called  The  Church 
Union.  The  name  did  not  suit  Mr.  Beecher 
and  it  was  changed  to  The  Christian  Union, 
because  he  wished  to  have  contributors  who 
were  "as  free  from  sectarian  bias  as  the  Ser 
mon  on  the  Mount."  The  paper  continued  to 
meet  with  success  and  increased  in  influence, 
though  at  times  with  varying  fortune,  during 
Mr.  Beecher's  editorship,  which  terminated  in 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  325 

1 88 1.  From  these  journalistic  labors  was 
collected  a  series  of  papers ;  to  which  were 
added  letters  from  abroad,  the  whole  being 
published  in  book  form  as  "Star  Papers." 
The  title  was  suggested  by  the  fact  that  many 
of  the  articles  appeared  in  the  Independent 
signed  by  a  star,  and  were  familiarly  spoken 
of  as  Star  Articles.  "Star  Papers"  contains 
excellent  pieces  of  descriptive  writing  on  a 
great  variety  of  subjects.  The  only  unity  to 
the  papers  is  the  binding  of  them  in  one 
volume.  Among  the  European  letters  are 
interesting  accounts  of  visits  to  Stratford-on 
Avon,  Warwick  Castle,  Oxford,  the  National 
Gallery,  London,  and  the  Louvre.  In  Strat 
ford,  besides  the  memories  of  Shakespeare,  the 
thing  that  most  impressed  him  was  the  service 
in  the  church  where  the  great  dramatist  lies 
buried.  It  was  the  first  time  that  he  ever  heard 
prayers  chanted  by  a  choir,  and  he  wrote,  "  It 
seemed  as  though  I  heard  not  with  my  ears,  but 
with  my  soul."  The  style  of  the  essays,  or 
short  sketches,  is  easy  and  entertaining,  giving 
new  evidence  of  the  versatility  of  the  man  who 
had  many  sides  to  his  nature. 


326     THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

When  the  writing  of  a  novel  for  the  Ledger 
was  suggested  to  Mr.  Beecher  by  his  friend 
Robert  Bonner,  he  was  surprised  and  hesitated 
to  accept  the  proposal  because  it  seemed  as 
much  out  of  his  line  as  "  a  request  to  carve  a 
statue,  or  build  a  man-of-war."  He  could  do 
many  things,  and  had  tried  his  hand  at  trades 
and  professions,  but  never  had  he  written  even 
a  short  story  before.  Being  tired  out  after  the 
Civil  War  and  seeking  relaxation,  he  decided  to 
make  it  his  supreme  work  at  Peekskill.  The 
result  was  "  Norwood,  or  Village  Life  in  New 
England,"  which  appeared  in  instalments  in  the 
Ledger,  and  then  reached  in  book  form  a  large 
number  of  readers.  In  the  preface  the  author 
admits  that  he  is  unfamiliar  with  the  machinery 
of  a  novel,  plot  and  counterplot,  but  hopes  to 
interest  his  readers  in  the  incidents  of  New 
England  village  life  as  Crabbe  depicted  the 
English  village  life. 

"  Norwood "  has  very  slight  elements  of  a 
novel,  almost  no  plot,  and  little  movement.  It 
is  diffuse  and  rambling,  full  of  digressions,  with 
many  discussions  not  at  all  germane  to  the 
subject  in  hand  except  as  all  forms  of  experi- 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  327 

ence  may  be  included  in  the  life  of  a  village. 
The  book  is  more  like  a  history  of  a  town  than 
a  novel,  though  the  element  of  romance  is  woven 
throughout.  To  one  who  has  the  leisure  to  read 
it,  for  it  is  long,  beginning  with  the  love  affair 
of  the  parents  and  following  the  children  from 
infancy  to  marriage  through  the  intervening 
spaces  of  college  and  professional  studies,  the 
book  is  entertaining  and  instructive.  The 
author  also  introduces  very  striking  conversa 
tions  on  politics  and  religion,  farm  life  and 
literature. 

The  character  sketches  in  "  Norwood "  ar^ 
well  drawn,  giving  the  usual  New  England  per 
sonages,  the  village  doctor,  the  minister,  the 
young  college  man,  the  retired  sea-captain,  the 
negro  servant,  with  many  other  curious  people 
worth  knowing.  The  book  was  written  sponta 
neously,  requiring  no  labored  research,  but  the 
pleasant  pastime  of  recalling  old  memories.  It 
is  a  kind  of  autobiography  without  exact  dates, 
names  and  places  reproducing  the  author's  own 
experience  in  a  thousand  forms.  The  elm  trees 
that  shade  the  streets  of  Norwood  are  like  those 
which  he  had  passed  beneath  in  many  a  country 


328      THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

visit  "  The  elms  of  New  England ! "  he  ex 
claimed.  "They  were  as  much  a  part  of  her 
beauty  as  the  columns  of  the  Parthenon  were 
the  glory  of  its  architecture ;  "  and  they  sym 
bolized  for  him  the  Puritan's  inflexibility  of 
character,  "  being  broad  at  the  root,  firm  in  the 
trunk,  and  yielding  at  the  top,  yet  returning 
again,  after  every  impulse,  into  position  and 
symmetry."  The  Puritan  Sabbath  is  equally 
well  described,  when  nature  and  the  village 
street  seem  both  to  indicate  that  a  solemn 
change  has  come  into  human  affairs ;  and 
when,  in  spite  of  strictness  and  self-conscious 
conduct,  the  day  brought  with  it  a  sense 
of  spiritual  things :  "  The  one  great  poem  of 
New  England  is  her  Sunday !  Through  that 
she  has  escaped  materialism.  That  has  been 
the  crystal  dome  overhead  through  which  imagi 
nation  has  been  kept  alive.  New  England's 
imagination  is  to  be  found  —  not  in  art  or  litera 
ture  —  but  in  her  inventions,  her  social  organism, 
and,  above  all,  in  her  religious  life."  The  village 
worthies  often  say  good  things.  Tommy  Taft, 
bald  down  to  the  top  of  his  ears,  with  a  nose 
that  hung  on  his  face  like  an  old-fashioned  door 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  329 

knocker,  usually  talks  in  a  quaint,  humorous  way, 
and  Pete  Sawmill,  the  big  black  fellow,  who  is 
something  of  a  hero,  wonders  what  he  has  such 
long  legs  for,  but  puts  them  to  good  use 
when  his  master,  General  Cathcart,  is  wounded 
and  taken  prisoner  at  Gettysburg.  Old  Uncle 
Eb's  definition  of  a  gentleman  is  a  credit  to  his 
penetration.  "A  gentleman,"  he  said,  "must 
see  everybody  without  looking,  and  know  every 
body  without  inquiry,  and  say  just  the  right 
thing  to  everybody  without  trying  to  ;  and,  above 
all,  he  must  make  everybody  in  his  presence  do 
the  best  things  they  know  how  to  do." 

Mr.  Beecher's  greatest  influence  upon  the 
history  of  his  times  was  as  an  orator  who 
not  only  preached  on  political  and  economic 
themes,  but  ascended  the  public  platform  in 
the  interests  of  good  government  and  purity 
in  politics.  The  work  that  he  did  in  this 
way  as  an  anti-slavery  speaker  is  a  part  of 
the  permanent  records  of  American  life.  As 
an  orator  there  was  no  man  who  had  greater 
immediate  power  over  an  audience.  He  wielded 
them  from  the  first,  and  when  he  rose  to 
impassioned  outbursts  of  moral  feeling  he 


330     THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

carried  them  with  him  overwhelmingly.  The 
qualities  that  made  him  a  great  preacher, 
given  more  freedom  on  the  platform,  made 
him  a  great  orator.  His  influence  over  a 
crowd  came  from  the  correctness  of  his  rea 
soning  and  the  amplitude  of  his  knowledge 
as  much  as  from  the  subtle  turn  of  phrase, 
the  good  story,  or  the  eloquence. 

Many  were  the  exciting  meetings  he  partici 
pated  in  from  the  time  in  1856  when  a  num 
ber  of  prominent  men,  recognizing  his  ability, 
requested  Plymouth  Church  to  give  him  a 
leave  of  absence  "to  traverse  the  country  on 
behalf  of  the  cause  of  liberty  "  until  after  the 
Civil  War  was  over.  In  many  parts  of  the 
country  he  bore  his  testimony  in  such  a  way 
that  it  lived  in  the  hearts  of  his  hearers. 
When  the  emigrants  were  hurrying  to  Kansas 
to  overcome  the  "  Squatter  Sovereignty,"  he 
declared  that  a  rifle  was  more  effective  than 
a  Bible  in  converting  the  border  ruffians,  and 
a  Sharpe  rifle  was  popularly  called  "  Beecher's 
Bible."  In  the  Fremont  Campaign  Mr.  Beecher 
threw  himself  into  the  political  struggle,  mak 
ing  speeches  throughout  the  state  of  New  York 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  331 

sometimes  two  or  three  times  a  week,  to  eight 
thousand  people  in  the  open  air,  thus  becom 
ing  an  important  factor  in  the  growth  of 
Republican  sentiment ;  and  during  the  Civil 
War  his  addresses  to  the  soldiers  going  to 
the  front,  like  his  anniversary  speeches  and 
sermons,  kept  up  the  faith  of  all  in  the 
righteousness  of  the  cause  for  which  the  war 
had  been  engaged  in. 

When  the  Civil  War  burst  upon  the  country, 
Mr.  Beecher  never  left  an  opportunity  unused 
to  urge  its  necessity  and  keep  before  men  the 
moral  meaning  of  it.  The  sermon  he  preached 
on  April  14,  1861,  when  Fort  Sumter  had 
been  fired  upon,  "The  Battle  set  in  Array," 
using  as  his  text,  "Speak  unto  the  children 
of  Israel,  that  they  go  forward,"  was  an 
exhortation  to  enter  into  the  great  struggle 
without  fear.  He  hated  war  as  much  as  any 
man,  but  he  felt  there  were  other  evils  as 
great  and  more  terrible,  as  he  explained,  "  I 
hold  that  it  is  ten  thousand  times  better  to 
have  war  than  to  have  slavery " ;  and  when 
answering  the  objection  of  pecuniary  cost  in 
the  prosecution  of  the  war,  he  laid  down  the 


332      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN  LETTERS 

principle  that  "we  must  not  stop  to  measure 
the  costs,  especially  the  costs  of  going  for 
ward,  on  any  basis  so  mean  and  narrow  as 
that  of  pecuniary  prosperity.  We  must  put 
our  honor  and  religion  into  this  struggle." 
The  sermon  on  "The  National  Flag"  was 
preached  to  the  "  Brooklyn  Fourteenth,"  a  col 
lection  being  taken  up  on  the  occasion  which 
amounted  to  $3000  to  aid  in  equipping  the 
regiment.  "The  Camp,  its  Dangers  and 
Duties"  was  an  important  statement  of  the 
soldier's  duties.  Themes  all  bearing  upon 
the  conduct  and  purpose  of  the  war  were 
selected  when  the  time  seemed  ripe  for  plain 
speech :  "  Modes  and  Duties  of  Emancipa 
tion,"  "National  Injustice  and  Penalty,"  "The 
Ground  and  Forms  of  Government,"  and  "Lib 
erty  under  Laws." 

By  far  the  most  important  service  that  Henry 
Ward  Beecher  rendered  his  country  was  the 
series  of  speeches  that  he  made  in  the  leading 
cities  of  England  in  1863,  when  it  looked  as  if 
the  British  Government  would  recognize  the 
Confederacy.  He  had  gone  abroad  for  rest, 
having  made  up  his  mind  not  to  say  anything 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  333 

publicly  in  England  on  the  subject  of  the  war. 
He  was  most  disheartened  when  he  realized  that 
members  of  Parliament  and  professional  men 
were  almost  without  exception  against  the  North, 
and  it  seemed  futile  for  him  to  make  any  efforts 
to  enlighten  them.  When  he  first  landed  he 
refused  many  invitations  to  speak.  It  was  only 
on  his  return  from  the  Continent  that  he  was 
led  to  change  his  mind  because  it  was  shown 
him  that  the  few  friends  of  the  North  needed 
support,  and  because  he  was  indignant  at  the 
sneers  and  misrepresentations  that  everywhere 
were  hurled  at  his  country.  The  first  speech 
was  at  Manchester.  Arriving  in  that  city  he 
soon  discovered  that  there  was  great  opposition 
to  the  meeting,  and  for  a  time  the  managers 
thought  of  abandoning  the  attempt.  The  streets 
were  placarded  with  inflammatory  posters.  One 
of  them  read :  "  Men  of  Manchester,  English 
men  !  what  reception  can  you  give  this  wretch, 
save  unmitigated  disgust  and  contempt  ?  He  is 
a  friend  of  that  inhuman  monster,  General  But 
ler.  He  is  the  friend  of  that  so-called  Gospel 
Preacher  Cheever,  who  said  in  one  of  his  sermons, 
*  Fight  against  the  South  till  hell  freezes,  and 


334      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

then  continue  the  battle  on  the  ice.'  "  The  oppo 
sition  naturally  increased  the  size  of  the  meeting. 
When  Mr.  Beecher  began  to  speak  the  enemies 
present  caused  an  uproar,  and  it  was  some  time 
before  he  could  get  in  even  an  occasional  word. 
"The  question  was,"  he  afterward  said,  "who 
could  hold  out  longest.  There  were  five  or  six 
storm  centres,  boiling  and  whirling  at  the  same 
time.  ...  It  was  like  talking  to  a  storm  at  sea." 
He  used  various  tricks  to  get  a  hearing ;  some 
times  he  would  laugh  outright  at  the  spectacle 
of  an  old  woman  beating  her  neighbor  with  an 
umbrella,  and  the  crowd  would  stop  yelling  to 
see  what  he  was  laughing  at ;  sometimes  he 
would  answer  a  question  that  was  thrown  up  at 
him  from  the  crowd,  and  sometimes  he  gave 
up  addressing  the  crowd  and  made  part  of  his 
speech  to  the  reporters  sitting  in  front  of  him. 
After  an  hour  and  a  half  of  this  broken  kind  of 
an  address  he  finally  won  the  right  to  speak  by 
his  pluck  and  good  nature.  Then  he  spoke  for 
two  hours  more,  outlining  the  history  of  slavery 
and  showing  that  the  Civil  War  was  fought  to 
decide  whether  human  labor  should  be  free  or 
bound,  and  appealing  to  their  self-esteem  by 


HENRY  WARD   BEECHER  335 

urging:    "Join  with  us,   then,   Britons.     From 
you  we  learnt  the  doctrine  of  what  a  man  was 
worth ;   from  you  we  learnt  to  detest  all  oppres 
sions  ;  from  you  we  learnt  that  it  was  the  noblest 
thing  a  man  could  do  to  die  for  a  right  principle." 
The  speech  in  Glasgow  was  equally  effective, 
the  speaker's  wisdom  being  shown  in  the  way  he 
appealed  to  the  common  people  by  emphasizing 
the  fact  that   the  "American    question   is   the 
working  mans   question,  all   over    the    world; 
the  slave-master's  doctrine  is  that  capital  should 
own    labor!'     In    Edinburgh,    Liverpool,    and 
London  there  were  meetings    of   similar  char 
acter,  but  in  each    place    the    subject    of  the 
address  was  selected  which  seemed  most  appro 
priate.      The   speeches    were    reported    in    full 
in  the    English   papers,  and   especially  in   the 
London    Times.     They   were   discussed    every 
where  ;  and  as  they  summed  up  Mr.  Beecher's 
whole  knowledge  of  the  slavery  question  as  it 
affected  civil  government,  morals,  and  religion, 
the  English  people  had  poured  out  upon  them 
such  a   torrent   of    facts,    arguments,    appeals, 
criticisms,   and  eloquence  that   they  could   no 
longer  be  in  doubt  of  the  purpose  of  the  North. 


336      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

The  sentiment  of  the  English  nation  was  deeply 
influenced.  To  say  the  least,  it  was  less  likely 
after  Mr.  Beecher's  speeches  than  before  them 
that  England  would  recognize  the  South.  His 
words  were  attacked  in  the  papers,  discussed  in 
the  clubs ;  and  he  was  caricatured  in  Pimch. 
Oliver  Wendell  Holmes  called  him  "  The  Min 
ister  Plenipotentiary,"  in  his  clever  article  in  the 
Atlantic  Monthly,  asserting  that  Mr.  Beecher's 
series  of  speeches  constituted  "  a  more  remark 
able  embassy  than  any  envoy  who  has  repre 
sented  us  in  Europe  since  Franklin  pleaded  the 
cause  of  the  young  Republic  at  the  Court  of 
Versailles.  He  kissed  no  royal  hand,  he  talked 
with  no  courtly  diplomatists,  he  was  the  guest 
of  no  titled  legislator,  he  had  no  official  exist 
ence  ;  but  through  the  hearts  of  the  people  he 
reached  nobles,  ministers,  courtiers,  the  throne 
itself." 

The  comprehensiveness  of  the  English 
speeches  is  seen  when  they  are  read  in  a 
series.  At  Manchester  a  history  was  given  of 
the  political  movements  which  led  to  a  conflict 
between  the  two  sections  of  the  Union ;  at 
Edinburgh  was  explained  how  the  nation 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  337 

grew  up  out  of  separate  states  with  the  struggle 
for  control  between  the  North  and  South,  the 
latter  rebelling  when  it  was  defeated  in  politics; 
in  the  Liverpool  speech  it  was  pointed  out  to 
the  inhabitants  of  that  commercial  and  manu 
facturing  centre  that  their  interests  were  injured 
by  slavery,  and  that  "  this  attempt  to  cover  the 
fairest  portion  of  the  earth  with  a  slave  popula 
tion  that  buys  nothing,  and  a  degraded  white 
population  that  buys  next  to  nothing,  should 
array  against  it  the  sympathy  of  every  true 
political  economist  and  every  thoughtful  and 
far-seeing  manufacturer,  as  tending  to  strike  at 
the  vital  want  of  commerce,  —  not  the  want  of 
cotton,  but  the  want  of  customers."  In  London 
Mr.  Beecher,  while  appealing  to  the  conscience 
of  the  people  and  their  Christianity,  put  before 
them  in  connected  form  what  he  had  said  in 
other  places,  and  left  in  the  capital  of  the  British 
nation  the  lasting  impression  that  the  war  was 
due  to  slavery  and  the  desire  of  the  South  to 
found  a  great  slave-empire,  and  English  support 
meant  the  aiding  in  this  undertaking. 

The  success  of  the  speeches  in  England  was 
due  in  no  little  measure  to  Mr.  Beecher's  quick- 
z 


338      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

ness  at  repartee  and  promptness  in  answering 
questions.  This  faculty,  which  he  always  dis 
played,  won  him  the  admiration  of  the  people 
and  silenced  the  objector;  as  in  New  York  once, 
when  he  was  speaking  of  the  number  of  wives 
of  the  slaves  who  were  forced  to  move  from 
place  to  place,  and  a  voice  called  out,  "  There  are 
men  in  New  York  who  have  twenty  wives,"  he 
replied,  "  I  am  sorry  for  them  ;  I  go  in  for  their 
immediate  emancipation."  \_Great  cheering.~\ 
When  he  was  hissed  he  remarked  that  it  was 
fair  to  give  the  other  side  a  chance.  Some  one 
called  out,  "How  about  the  Russians ? "  referring 
to  the  growing  friendship  between  the  North 
and  the  Russian  Government.  Mr.  Beecher 
answered,  "  Now  you  know  what  we  felt  when 
you  were  flirting  with  Mr.  Mason  at  your  Lord 
Mayor's  banquet."  At  another  time  the  speaker 
said  :  "  Now  Great  Britain  has  thrown  her  arms 
of  love  around  the  Southerners  and  turns  from 
the  Northerners.  [No.]  She  don't  ?  [_Cheers.~\ 
I  have  only  to  say  that  she  had  been  caught  in 
very  suspicious  circumstances."  \_La2ighter.~] 
With  many  other  bright  sallies  and  amusing 
anecdotes  he  soothed  the  audiences  until  they 


HENRY   WARD   BEECHER  339 

were   ready  to   listen   to  his   more  formidable 
arguments. 

After  the  Civil  War  Mr.  Beecher's  interest 
in  politics  continued.  He  spoke  constantly 
on  such  subjects  as  "  Conditions  of  a  Restored 
Union,"  "  Reconstruction  of  Southern  States," 
and  "  National  Unity."  Among  these  orations 
there  were  a  tender  eulogy  upon  Abraham  Lin 
coln  and  an  appreciative  memorial  of  General 
Grant.  As  he  grew  older  his  powers  seemed 
to  diminish  very  little,  and  until  the  last  he 
was  busy  with  his  literary  work,  which  became 
more  distinctly  religious.  The  unfinished  book 
that  remained  after  he  had  laid  down  his  pen 
was  the  valuable  fragment  of  his  "  Life  of 
Christ,"  —  a  work  upon  which  he  desired 
to  put  his  best  and  final  efforts.  He  also 
intended  to  write  his  "  Autobiography,"  but  he 
died  on  March  8,  1887,  leaving  scarcely  any 
notes  except  those  very  full  ones  scattered 
through  his  published  writings,  for  he  referred 
to  himself  often,  relating  numerous  experiences 
of  his  early  and  mature  life.  Dr.  Holmes 
says,  "  The  way  a  man  handles  his  egotisms 
is  a  test  of  his  mastery  over  an  audience  or 


340      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

a  class  of  readers."  Mr.  Beecher's  egotisms 
were  never  used  for  self-glorification,  but  to 
illustrate  and  make  real  the  truth  he  was 
unfolding. 

For  almost  half  a  century  Henry  Ward 
Beecher  was  one  of  the  most  conspicuous 
persons  in  American  life.  The  product  of 
his  brain  during  all  that  time  was  enormous 
and  exceedingly  varied.  That  he  moulded 
the  opinions  of  men,  there  is  no  doubt ;  that 
he  urged  an  intelligent  and  devoted  adherence 
to  Christianity,  there  can  be  no  question ;  that 
he  entered  deeply  into  the  politics  of  his  time 
is  evident ;  and  through  all  his  activity  he 
was  unfailing  in  the  use  of  his  voice  and  pen 
for  what  he  considered  the  advancement  of 
human  society. 


CHAPTER   X 

PHILLIPS    BROOKS 

DR.  HOLMES,  once  writing  to  Bishop  Clark 
of  Rhode  Island  and  thanking  him  for  his 
memorial  sermon  upon  the  character  of  Phil 
lips  Brooks,  said,  "  It  was  a  very  serious  office 
to  which  you  felt  yourself  called,  for  you  had 
to  deal  with  a  character  which  I  believe  is  to 
stand  as  the  ideal  minister  of  the  American 
gospel."  Such  words  of  appreciation  are  a 
just  estimate  of  the  great  preacher's  life.  He 
was  the  ideal  minister  of  the  American  gospel, 
for  he  gathered  into  himself  the  best  elements 
of  American  manhood,  he  had  the  deepest 
faith  in  American  institutions,  he  had  the 
energy,  the  large  vision,  the  persistent  hope 
of  the  young  nation  dealing  with  its  problems 
of  government,  education,  and  character.  And 
he  was  peculiarly  the  preacher  of  a  gospel. 
Many  of  the  American  clergy  have  written 


342      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

books  on  various  subjects,  been  influential  in 
the  affairs  of  state,  been  professors  and  heads 
of  colleges,  and  through  these  various  channels 
have  affected  American  life,  but  the  power  of 
Phillips  Brooks  was  the  power  of  the  preacher, 
the  man  who  chose  to  reach  the  people  through 
the  spoken  word;  and  throwing  his  whole  per 
sonality  into  his  thought  and  its  expression, 
he  gave  them  the  truth  which  he  had  to  bring. 
Instead  of  writing  books  on  literary  subjects, 
he  wrote  sermons  which  in  themselves  are 
literature. 

Born  in  Boston,  December  13,  1835,  he  was 
educated  in  the  best  traditions  of  the  city. 
He  graduated  at  Harvard,  and  then  studied 
for  the  ministry  of  the  Episcopal  church  at 
the  Theological  Seminary  in  Alexandria,  Vir 
ginia.  He  passed  a  few  years  as  a  minister  in 
Philadelphia,  but  returned  to  Boston  as  rector 
of  Trinity  Church  in  1869,  and  was  elected 
Bishop  of  Massachusetts  in  1891.  He  was  in 
every  sense  a  Boston  man,  moulded  by  its 
culture,  responding  to  its  history,  and  giving 
impetus  to  its  growth.  He  continued  in  his 
work  and  person  the  succession  of  the  com- 


PHILLIPS  BROOKS  343 

manding  figures  in  New  England  religious 
life.  His  ancestors  had  been  conspicuous  in 
New  England  history  from  John  Cotton,  the 
learned  minister  of  Boston,  to  Samuel  Phillips, 
who  founded  Andover  Academy.  So  the  piety 
and  moral  fibre  of  the  Puritan  were  his  by  the 
right  of  inheritance,  and  the  spirit  of  inde 
pendent  thought  and  breadth  were  bred  by 
contact  with  the  times  in  which  he  lived; 
these,  combined  with  the  genius  and  nobility 
of  his  own  nature,  brought  back  again  the 
days  of  the  great  preachers  who  wielded  men 
by  the  logic  and  force  of  their  convictions. 

In  college  Phillips  Brooks  was  a  good  scholar, 
a  delightful  companion,  a  loyal  son  of  Harvard, 
and  a  student  who  gave  great  promise  by  his 
proficiency  in  English  composition.  He  has  told 
how  the  reading  of  "  In  Memoriam,"  just  then 
published,  was  an  event  of  the  first  importance 
in  his  student  days.  After  graduation  he  made 
the  first  failure  of  his  life.  As  a  teacher  in  the 
Boston  Latin  School  he  was  unable  to  control 
the  rebellious  spirits  in  his  class ;  and  after  the 
trial  of  a  few  months  sent  in  his  resignation  with 
the  words  of  Francis  Gardner,  the  head-master. 


344     THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

ringing  in  his  ears,  "  That  he  never  knew  a 
man  who  failed  as  a  schoolmaster  to  succeed  in 
any  other  occupation."  However,  after  a  period 
of  discouragement,  he  went  to  Alexandria  to  study 
for  the  ministry.  There  he  threw  himself  into 
the  studies  of  the  class  room,  and  carried  on  an 
immense  amount  of  private  reading,  keeping 
full  notes  and  writing  out  his  ideas  in  a  series 
of  note-books  which  have  a  great  value  now  to 
those  interested  in  his  development,  for  they 
contain  in  a  remarkable  degree  the  germ  of  all 
his  thinking.  He  made  a  full  study  of  the  Church 
Fathers  in  the  original  Greek  and  Latin,  putting 
aside  for  future  use  in  the  note-books  the  strik 
ing  phrases,  the  thoughts  that  stimulated  him, 
and  the  sentences  that  sprang  up  in  his  own 
mind  as  definitions  or  illustrations,  and  the 
sonnets  that  he  wrote  to  celebrate  in  verse 
those  who  helped  him  most,  a  St.  Jerome,  or  a 
Clement.  One  of  his  essays,  written  in  the 
seminary  days  with  the  title,  "  The  Centralizing 
Power  of  the  Gospel/'  gives  in  outline  many 
of  the  thoughts  which  were  most  characteristic 
of  him  in  later  years :  "  Truth  centralizes  not 
thought  only,  but  affection  and  will,"  he  wrote, 


PHILLIPS  BROOKS  345 

showing  "that  Christianity,  if  it  claim  to  be  a 
complete  not  a  partial  system  for  the  redemp 
tion  of  our  life,  must  come  with  its  central  truth 
broad  enough  and  true  enough  to  embrace  and 
save  it  all" ;  and  the  fulness  of  the  moral  life 
he  found  in  Christ,  "  the  Intellect  coming  up  to 
say,  '  Lord,  teach  me ' ;  the  Heart  bringing  its 
tribute  of  loyalty  and  love ;  the  Will  with  bowed 
head  echoing  the  first  Christian  question,  '  What 
wilt  Thou  have  me  do  ? '  " 

From  the  very  start,  as  rector  of  the  Church 
of  the  Advent,  Philadelphia,  and  later  rector  of 
Holy  Trinity  Church  in  the  same  city,  Phillips 
Brooks  was  a  great  preacher.  It  was  at  once 
realized  that  his  was  a  powerful  nature,  full  of 
spiritual  force  and  enthusiasm,  ready  to  help  all 
who  might  come  to  hear  what  he  had  to  say. 
His  fame  soon  spread  abroad,  and  he  leaped  into 
national  recognition  when,  during  the  Civil  War, 
he  preached  his  strong  sermons  on  thanksgiving 
occasions  or  pressed  home  the  lesson  of  some 
defeat  or  victory.  Bred  in  the  North,  and  look 
ing  upon  slavery  as  the  supreme  curse  of  the 
land,  he  did  not  hesitate  to  preach  against  it  and 
demand  its  suppression.  Prominent  people  with- 


346      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

drew  from  his  church  and  the  usual  abuse  that 
followed  such  a  courageous  expression  of  opin 
ion  was  heaped  upon  him,  but  never  for  a 
moment  did  it  restrain  him.  It  was  soon  recog 
nized  throughout  the  country  that  a  new  ad 
vocate  of  freedom  had  risen  to  uphold  the 
administration  in  the  carrying  on  of  the  war 
and  to  set  before  the  people  the  moral  purposes 
for  which  it  was  fought.  He  was  determined  to 
have  the  courage  to  speak  out  clearly.  "  The 
great  vice  of  our  people,"  he  said,  "in  their 
relation  to  the  politics  of  the  land,  is  cowardice. 
It  is  not  lack  of  intelligence :  our  people  know 
the  meaning  of  political  conditions  with  won 
derful  sagacity.  It  is  not  low  morality.  ...  It 
is  cowardice."  The  two  sermons,  published 
in  pamphlet  form,  that  became  immediately 
famous  during  the  Philadelphia  ministry,  were 
"  Our  Mercies  of  Reoccupation,"  preached  on 
Thanksgiving  Day,  November  26,  1863,  and 
"The  Life  and  Death  of  Abraham  Lincoln," 
preached  April  23,  1865,  when  the  dead  Presi 
dent  lay  for  a  time  in  Philadelphia. 

The    main    thought    of    "  Our    Mercies    of 
Reoccupation"   was    that    at    last   the    people 


PHILLIPS  BROOKS  347 

were  beginning  to  appreciate  the  original 
principles  of  the  government,  and  were  reoc- 
cupying  and  entering  into  again,  through  the 
experiences  of  the  war,  the  full  intention  of 
the  founders  of  the  Constitution.  He  gave 
thanks  because  the  citizens  were  ready  to 
enjoy  "the  full  occupation  of  the  government 
of  their  fathers,  the  reentrance  into  the  prin 
ciples  and  fundamental  truths  of  the  nation 
ality  which  they  inherited,  but  which,  up  to 
the  beginning  of  this  war,  they  had  not 
begun  worthily  to  occupy  and  use."  In  justi 
fying  his  treatment  of  such  a  subject  on 
Thanksgiving  Day,  the  preacher  asked,  "  Is 
it  the  part  of  earnest  men  just  to  come  up  to 
our  churches  and  thank  God  for  the  cornfields 
and  busy  stores,  and  say  nothing  about  the 
war?"  He  said  a  great  deal  about  the  war 
and  slavery,  and  especially  to  those  who  so 
misread  their  Bible  as  to  confirm  their  desires 
to  find  in  the  sacred  book  arguments  for  the 
ownership  of  men.  The  statement  that  the 
Bible  recognizes  slavery  was  met  by  indicat 
ing  the  fallacy  in  the  two  meanings  of  the 
word  "recognition."  "Men  prove  elaborately," 


348      THE  CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

he  contended,  "  that  the  fact  of  bondage  is 
recognized  in  the  Bible,  which  is  indisputa 
ble  ;  and  then  they  jump  you  over  and  tell 
you  that  they  have  proved  that  the  right  of 
bondage  is  recognized  in  the  Bible,  which  is 
an  entirely  different  thing,  and  which  they 
have  not  proved  at  all."  Referring  to  a 
Bishop  who  had  upheld  the  Bible  argument 
for  slavery,  he  rejoiced  that  a  protest  had 
been  made  by  clergy  and  laymen  alike.  "  As 
name  after  name  was  added  to  that  protest," 
he  said,  "  as  the  assent  came  in  so  unani 
mously  from  every  direction — from  the  mis 
sion  chapels  in  the  hills,  from  the  cathedral 
churches  in  the  city,  from  the  seats  of  our 
schools  and  our  seminary,  and,  above  all,  thank 
God,  from  the  honored  dignity  of  the  Bishop's 
chair  —  it  seemed  to  me  as  if  every  new  assent 
wiped  from  the  vesture  of  the  church  we  love 
some  stain  of  her  compliance,  and  gave  prom 
ise  of  the  day  when  she  shall  stand  up  in 
her  perfect  and  unsullied  excellence."  The 
preacher  made  no  compromises,  and  vehe 
mently  repelled  the  accusation  that  his  church, 
as  a  whole,  was  in  sympathy  with  slavery. 


PHILLIPS  BROOKS  349 

The  sermon  on  "  The  Life  and  Death  of 
Abraham  Lincoln"  was  even  more  earnest  in 
condemnation  of  the  national  sin.  It  was  a 
just  and  glowing  eulogy  of  Lincoln  and  a 
vindication  of  all  that  the  President  had  stood 
for.  In  Lincoln  was  seen  "the  greatness  of 
Teal  goodness  and  the  goodness  of  real  great 
ness."  He  was  "  the  gentlest,  kindest,  most 
indulgent  man  that  ever  ruled  a  state."  "  If 
ever  the  face  of  a  man  writing  solemn  words 
glowed  with  a  solemn  joy,"  it  was  said,  "  it 
must  have  been  the  face  of  Abraham  Lincoln 
as  he  bent  over  the  page  when  the  Emancipa 
tion  Proclamation  of  1863  was  growing  into 
shape,  and  giving  manhood  and  freedom  as 
he  wrote  it  to  hundreds  of  thousands  of  his 
fellow-men.  Here  was  a  work  in  which  his 
whole  nature  could  rejoice.  Here  was  an  act 
that  crowned  the  whole  culture  of  his  life." 
In  one  of  those  splendid  generalizations  for 
which  Phillips  Brooks  was  noted,  the  conflict 
which  issued  in  the  death  of  Lincoln  was 
pictured  as  a  struggle  between  two  different 
types  of  American  character.  Until  after  the 
war  there  was  no  one  American  character  that 


350      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

extended  throughout  the  land,  but  there  were 
two  characters  in  absolute  opposition  and 
deadly  conflict.  The  death  of  the  President 
was  the  result  of  the  conflict  of  the  two  Ameri 
can  natures,  the  false  and  the  true.  "  It  was 
slavery  and  freedom  that  met  in  their  two  rep 
resentatives,"  he  exclaimed,  "the  assassin  and 
the  President.  .  .  .  Solemnly  in  the  sight  of 
God  I  charge  this  murder  where  it  belongs,  on 
slavery.  By  all  the  goodness  that  was  in  him, 
by  all  the  love  we  had  for  him  (and  who  shall 
tell  how  great  it  was  ?),  by  all  the  sorrow  that 
has  burdened  down  this  desolate  and  dreadful 
week,  I  charge  his  murder  where  it  belongs, 
on  slavery." 

Phillips  Brooks's  intense  feeling  of  the  sa- 
credness  and  righteousness  of  the  Civil  War 
found  its  most  characteristic  expression  when 
he  was  called  upon  to  make  the  prayer  at 
the  Harvard  Commemoration  service,  July  21, 
1865.  This  was  the  occasion  on  which  Lowell 
read  the  "  Commemoration  Ode,"  and  famous 
speeches  were  made  as  the  names  of  the  Har 
vard  men  who  died  for  their  country  were 
honored,  but  the  testimony  of  many  present 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  351 

during  the  exercises  was  that  the  greatest  im 
mediate  effect  was  produced  by  the  prayer  of 
Phillips  Brooks.  In  his  vehement  and  eager 
way  he  lifted  up  his  mighty  form,  and  poured 
forth,  as  a  representative  of  the  people,  the 
pain  and  sorrow  of  the  war,  the  thanksgiving 
for  the  lives  of  heroism,  and  the  clear  view 
of  moral  questions  that  had  come,  and  the  joy 
of  victory  in  the  vindication  of  God's  pur 
poses.  In  extemporaneous  speech  Mr.  Brooks 
was  always  most  moving  and  effective ;  when 
he  joined  to  it  the  intellectual  and  spiritual 
attitude  of  prayer  he  seemed  like  one  inspired. 
There  was  such  dignity  and  reverence,  such 
rapid,  breathless  unburdening  of  himself  in 
the  presence  of  the  Almighty,  that  all  were 
lifted  up  into  the  greatness  of  his  thought, 
and  felt  their  souls  go  out  in  communion  with 
God  through  the  fervency  of  his  appeal. 

Phillips  Brooks  came  to  the  men  of  his  gen 
eration  distinctly  as  the  preacher.  In  all  his 
public  addresses,  even  after-dinner  speeches, 
which  were  few  in  number,  in  his  lectures  and 
books,  he  was  moved  by  the  thought  of  deliv 
ering  a  message  which  had  fired  his  own  soul, 


352      THE   CLERGY  IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

and  he  knew  would  inspire  others  with  truth 
and  genuine  motives  for  action.  He  refused 
the  many  requests  for  magazine  articles,  con 
tributing  two  or  three  only,  —  one  upon  the 
character  of  his  friend,  Dean  Stanley,  for  the 
Atlantic  Monthly,  and  another  for  the  Prince- 
ton  Review  on  "  The  Pulpit  and  Popular 
Scepticism."  The  pulpit  was  the  place  of  his 
greatest  power.  Whether  in  his  own  church 
or  in  others,  in  the  great  English  cathedrals, 
or  addressing  workingmen  in  Faneuil  Hall  or 
at  theatre  services,  or  at  the  noon-day  services 
during  Lent  in  St.  Paul's  Church,  Boston,  or 
Trinity  Church,  New  York,  when  the  men  of 
Wall  Street  crowded  to  hear  him,  he  made 
an  overwhelming  impression.  He  was  like 
no  other  preacher  that  the  people  had  heard 
before.  With  no  effort  at  oratory  in  the 
popular  sense,  and  no  attempt  at  producing  a 
sensation,  but  with  an  absolute  simplicity  of 
manner  and  earnestness  of  thought  he  gave 
his  own  great  conception  of  life  and  eternity, 
so  beautifully  set  forth  with  the  aid  of  his 
poetic  imagination  and  the  sincerity  and  faith 
of  his  own  soul  that  no  one  could  help  catch- 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  353 

ing  some  of  the  greatness  of  his  thought.  In 
referring  to  Phillips  Brooks  as  preeminently 
the  preacher,  the  term  is  used  in  no  narrow 
sense,  but  rather  as  a  comprehensive  word  to 
include  the  richness  and  varied  qualities  of 
his  nature  as  they  found  expression  through 
his  personality.  His  own  definition  of  preach 
ing  is  broad  enough,  as  truth  uttering  itself 
through  personality.  The  larger  and  more  pro 
found  the  truth  and  the  greater  the  personality, 
so  much  greater  must  be  the  preacher's  office. 
Truth  to  him  meant  not  only  doctrinal  truth, 
or  even  Christian  truth,  technically  so  called, 
it  meant  all  truth  which  the  human  mind  and 
soul  could  gain  in  contact  with  nature,  life,  ex 
perience,  history,  literature,  religion,  and  God. 
It  was  universal  and  spiritual,  and  its  mission 
was  to  educate  and  inspire  men  and  nations 
so  that  they  might  live  as  God  intended  them 
to  live,  performing  the  humble  task  in  the 
light  of  eternal  purposes,  and  working  out  the 
destiny  which  was  to  be  their  redemption.  His 
conception  of  the  preacher's  office  was  to  unite, 
in  a  supreme  effort  of  giving,  the  scholar's 
knowledge,  the  scientist's  discovery,  the  phi- 

2A 


354   rHE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN  LETTERS 

losopher's  insight,  the  faith  of  sainthood,  the 
poet's  interpretation,  the  theologian's  doctrine, 
the  experiences  of  common  life,  the  teachings 
of  Jesus,  to  produce  character,  hope,  and  love. 
All  that  he  gained  from  his  study  and  expe 
riences  of  life,  his  prayer,  and  his  intercourse 
with  men,  he  fused  together  into  a  mighty 
message,  which  he  gave  unreservedly  and  with 
the  force  of  genius  to  the  thoughtful  people 
of  his  own  age  and  generation. 

As  a  preacher  the  physical  stature  of  the  man 
helped  his  power.  Some  one  said,  "  To  see  him 
in  the  pulpit  was  in  itself  a  message."  He  was 
six  feet  four  inches  in  height,  with  a  body  kingly 
in  proportions.  His  head,  large,  with  a  noble 
brow  and  finely  chiselled  features,  was  an  indi 
cation  of  the  breadth  and  largeness  of  all  his 
thinking,  and  of  the  delicacy  and  refinement  of 
his  nature.  But  the  eyes  were  what  gave  the 
nobility  and  expression  to  the  face.  They  were 
large  and  dark,  and  when  filled  with  earnestness 
or  righteous  indignation  they  seemed  to  double 
in  size,  and  one  felt  the  whole  man's  soul  behind 
them.  They  glowed  with  fire  or  were  soft  with 
the  tenderness  of  pleading.  At  times  they  were 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  355 

like  the  eyes  of  a  lion  at  bay,  so  fierce  they  were 
in  condemnation  of  wrong,  and  brave  in  uphold 
ing  what  he  considered  right.  As  the  preacher 
proceeded  in  his  sermon,  though  there  were  few 
gestures,  the  whole  body  seemed  to  sway  with 
emotion  and  intensity,  the  head  was  thrown 
back,  and  the  eyes  seemed  to  focus  in  their  liv 
ing  power  the  force  of  the  whole  message.  The 
words  came  with  rushing  rapidity  as  thought 
after  thought,  imagery  and  parable,  argument 
and  exhortation,  flowed  as  in  a  torrent.  Every 
motion  was  rapid,  as  if  his  loins  were  girded  for 
a  great  undertaking.  The  hearer  was  carried 
out  of  himself,  his  pulses  beat  quicker,  and  his 
mind  was  stimulated  to  grasp  the  meaning  of 
the  splendid  array  of  facts,  generalizations,  illus 
trations  that  were  presented  to  him.  People 
went  away  saying,  "  How  good  it  is  to  be  alive," 
and  "  How  easy  it  seems  to  be  heroic  "  ;  and  the 
impression  that  the  preacher  made  was  a  lasting 
one.  It  was  not  forgotten;  and  when  he  was 
heard  constantly  the  effect  of  all  the  previous 
sermons  seemed  to  live  again  and  increase  the 
power  of  the  new  one  by  a  process  of  spiritual 
accumulation.  But  in  all  this  rapidity  of  thought 


356      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

there  was  no  hasty  preparation  or  vagueness  of 
thought.  There  was  both  exactness  of  analysis 
and  unity  of  subject ;  and  the  total  impression 
was  definite,  the  central  theme  standing  out 
clearly  from  the  carefully  related  parts.  One 
of  the  important  artistic  effects  of  the  preaching 
was  the  sense  it  gave  of  the  accuracy  with  which 
a  great  force  moved,  rapidly,  but  with  the  swift 
ness  of  a  perfect  aim. 

In  the  "Lectures  on  Preaching"  delivered 
before  the  Divinity  School  of  Yale  College  in 
1877,  and  published  in  book  form,  Phillips 
Brooks  has  given  his  most  thoughtful  estimate 
of  preaching  and  revealed  the  methods  and 
principles  that  guided  him  in  his  successful 
work.  These  brilliant  lectures  were  a  worthy 
successor  to  the  earlier  ones  by  Henry  Ward 
Beecher.  They  became  at  once  popular,  being 
read  by  all  sorts  and  conditions  of  people  as 
well  as  by  theological  students.  The  sim 
plicity  of  outline  of  the  lectures  is  apparent 
from  the  topics  chosen:  "The  Two  Elements 
in  Preaching,"  "The  Preacher  Himself," 
"The  Preacher  in  his  Work,"  "The  Idea  of 
the  Sermon,"  "The  Congregation,"  "The 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  357 

Ministry  for   Our   Age,"  and   "The  Value  of 
the  Human  Soul."     While  all  the  lectures  are 
remarkable  in  their  insight  into  the  preacher's 
work  and  rich  with   metaphor  and  suggestion, 
the   most    characteristic    are    those    that    deal 
with  the  elements  of  preaching,  the   preacher 
himself,  and  the  kind  of  ministry  needed  for 
the    age.      The    elements    in    preaching   were 
truth  and  personality,  the  one  made  real  and 
definite  through  the  other.     Truth,  not  mechani 
cal,   or  microscopic,  but  large,  and  broad,  and 
vital,   should  be  brought  to  men  through  the 
medium    of    the    earnest    personality    of    the 
preacher  who  possesses  that  quality  that  kin 
dles   at   the  sight  of   men,  "that  keen  joy  at 
the   meeting   of    truth    and   the   human    mind, 
and  recognizes  how  God  made  them  for  each 
other.     It  is  the  power  by  which  a  man  loses 
himself    and     becomes     but    the     sympathetic 
atmosphere  between  the  truth  on  the  one  side 
of  him  and  the  man  on  the  other  side  of  him." 
And  in  the  treatment   of   themes  the  lecturer 
urged,  as  he  so  well  exhibited  in  his  own  work, 
breadth  of  handling,  "largeness  of  movement, 
the  great  utterance  of   great  truths,  the  great 


358      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

enforcement  of  great  duties,  as  distinct  from 
the  minute,  and  subtle,  and  ingenious  treatment 
of  little  topics,  side  issues  of  the  soul's  life, 
bits  of  anatomy,  the  bric-a-brac  of  theology." 
No  one  has  urged  more  earnestly  than  Phillips 
Brooks  the  need  of  having  a  man  stand  behind 
the  Word,  a  man  wide  in  sympathies,  deep  in 
thought,  and  manly,  speaking  out  of  the  ful 
ness  of  his  life. 

The  age  certainly  heard  Phillips  Brooks,  and 
it  was,  in  a  measure,  because  he  carried  out  in 
his  practice  the  principles  that  he  laid  down 
in  his  lectures.  But  the  age  also  heard  him 
because  he  was  a  great  man  with  a  large  soul 
and  a  rich  personality  with  a  genius  for  spir 
itual  expression.  His  various  volumes  of  ser 
mons,  from  the  first,  published  in  1878,  to  the 
last,  printed  after  his  death,  in  1896,  were  as 
successful  in  their  sales  as  many  popular 
novels.  Not  since  Bushnell  and  Beecher  was 
there  such  a  universally  known  and  loved 
clergyman  as  Phillips  Brooks.  The  volumes 
of  sermons  that  became  most  noted  were,  "  The 
Candle  of  the  Lord  and  other  Sermons,"  "  Ser 
mons  preached  in  English  Churches,"  "  Twenty 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  359 

Sermons,"  and  "The  Light  of  the  World  and 
other  Sermons."  These  sermons  were  pub 
lished  during  his  life  and  received  the  final 
revision  from  his  own  hand.  The  other  vol 
umes,  "  Sermons  for  the  Principal  Festivals 
and  Fasts  of  the  Church  Year"  and  "New 
Starts  in  Life,"  were  collected  and  printed 
after  his  death. 

Though  Mr.  Brooks  did  not  like  to  refer  to 
the  sermon  as  a  work  of  art  to  be  elaborately 
wrought  out  with  the  self-consciousness  of  a 
literary  achievement,  in  his  own  case  each  ser 
mon  was  as  much  an  artistic  whole  as  if  it 
had  been  a  poem.  The  central  idea,  either  the 
subject  chosen,  or  the  brilliant  metaphor  of 
the  text,  was  wrought  into  the  body  of  the 
work  as  related  to  every  part  of  it  and  made 
more  distinct  rather  than  confused  by  the  sub 
divisions  and  applications.  As  an  illustration 
of  this  unity  of  plan  and  thought,  "  The 
Symmetry  of  Life "  may  be  taken.  The  con 
ception  of  a  rounded  and  complete  human  life 
is  likened  to  the  mystic  city,  "the  holy  Jeru 
salem,"  of  which  it  was  said,  "  the  Length  and 
the  Breadth  and  the  Height  of  it  are  equal/' 


360      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

This  sermon  finds  its  natural  divisions  in  the 
three  dimensions  of  a  full  human  life,  its 
length,  its  breadth,  and  its  height.  The  ser 
mon  called  "  The  Wings  of  the  Seraphim," 
drawn  from  Isaiah's  glowing  imagery,  finds 
natural  and  artistic  divisions  in  the  theme 
itself.  Each  seraph  had  "  six  wings ;  with 
twain  he  covered  his  face,  and  with  twain  he 
covered  his  feet,  and  with  twain  he  did  fly." 
The  wings  covering  the  face  represented  rev 
erence,  those  covering  the  feet,  self-efface 
ment,  those  with  which  he  did  fly  illustrated 
active  obedience ;  and  these  are  used  to  pic 
ture  the  reverent,  self-sacrificing,  and  obedient 
life.  Many  other  examples  might  be  given  as 
in  "The  Pattern  in  the  Mount"  or  "Back 
grounds  and  Foregrounds "  to  show  the  dra 
matic  unity  of  these  discourses.  There  is  a 
scheme,  almost  a  deliberate  plot,  in  each  ser 
mon  which  it  is  interesting  to  watch  as  it 
develops  through  to  the  climax. 

As  striking  as  is  the  form  of  these  sermons 
the  subject-matter  is  what  makes  them  great. 
They  are  filled  with  vitality.  They  deal  not 
with  abstract  doctrines  so  much  as  with  life. 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  361 

They  express  the  opinions,  the  judgments,  and 
the  ideals  of  a  man  who  was  intensely  living  in 
every  part  of  his  nature,  full  of  enthusiasm  and 
loving  humanity.  The  sermons,  therefore,  are 
great  interpretations  of  human  life  in  its  com 
plexity,  failures,  and  possibilities.  Scattered 
throughout  them  are  to  be  found  epigrams, 
wise  sayings,  fascinating  similes,  the  principles 
of  the  statesman,  the  love  of  the  patriot,  the 
ardor  of  the  reformer,  the  insight  of  the  poet, 
and  the  faith  of  the  follower  of  Jesus.  If  one 
wants  to  get  at  the  views  of  Phillips  Brooks  on 
an  almost  infinite  variety  of  subjects,  it  is  only 
necessary  to  read  his  sermons.  The  whole 
range  of  his  knowledge  and  experience  he  drew 
upon  for  his  sermons,  not  in  any  pedantic  way, 
for  he  seldom  made  quotations,  nor  in  didactic 
fashions,  but  he  used  his  knowledge  just  as 
it  happened  to  illustrate  what  he  was  talking 
about  A  street  scene  in  Florence,  a  sunset 
among  the  Alps,  a  rock-hewn  temple  in  India, 
or  a  bit  of  knowledge  he  picked  up  at  a  Ger 
man  university  were  brought  into  the  sermons 
with  as  much  frankness  as  the  more  special 
knowledge  derived  from  his  theological  studies. 


362      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

He  rarely  ever  preached  upon  topics  which 
were  called  timely ;  that  is,  they  did  not  at  once 
suggest  contemporary  events  in  a  sensational 
way ;  but  the  sermons  were  full  of  present  inter 
est,  and  the  people  were  never  left  in  any 
doubt  what  his  views  were  on  the  questions  of 
the  hour  though  they  were  referred  to  indirectly 
rather  than  directly.  A  beautiful  direct  refer 
ence  to  the  occasion  was  when  he  preached  in 
Westminster  Abbey  on  the  eve  of  the  Fourth 
of  July,  1880.  At  the  end  of  the  sermon  he 
said  these  words  which  endeared  him  to  Eng 
lishmen  and  Americans  alike :  "  If  I  dare,"  he 
said,  —  "  generously  permitted  as  I  am  to  stand 
this  evening  in  the  venerable  Abbey,  so  full  of 
our  history  as  well  as  yours  —  to  claim  that  our 
festival  shall  have  some  sacredness  for  you  as 
well  as  for  us,  my  claim  rests  on  the  simple 
truth  that  to  all  true  men  the  birthday  of  a 
nation  must  always  be  a  sacred  thing.  For  in 
our  modern  thought  the  nation  is  the  making- 
place  of  men."  Patriotism  becomes  always  a 
noble  thing  as  it  is  denned  by  the  preacher  in 
the  application  of  his  principle  to  the  state,  a 
frequent  head  in  his  sermons.  "  Two  men  both 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  363 

love  their  country  :  one  loves  her  because  of  the 
advantage  that  he  gets  from  her,  the  help  that 
she  gives  to  his  peculiar  interests.  The  other 
loves  her  for  herself,  for  her  embodiment  of  the 
ideas  which  he  believes  are  truest  and  divinest 
and  most  human.  One  uses  the  country,  the 
other  asks  the  country  to  use  him." 

A  special  characteristic  of  these  sermons  is 
the  analysis  of  human  life  with  the  highest 
spiritual  interpretation  put  upon  every  phase 
of  it.  The  knowledge  of  the  motives  of  human 
action  is  surprising,  and  the  details  of  ambition 
and  desire  are  most  clearly  seen.  No  duty  is 
put  before  one  without  an  ardent  appeal  in 
the  very  statement  of  it.  Human  character  is 
scrutinized  and  examined  as  Browning  analyzes. 
Phillips  Brooks  has  written  the  inner  biography 
of  all  conditions  of  men,  with  an  earnestness 
and  sympathy,  a  delicacy  and  refinement  of 
touch  that  nothing  can  surpass,  with  forbear 
ance  and  infinite  faith  in  their  possibilities. 
The  young  college  man  and  the  young  busi 
ness  man,  with  the  strength  of  youth  and  the 
attractive  future  of  success  before  them,  are 
favorite  subjects  in  the  sermons,  as  also  the 


364      THE   CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

professional  man,  the  reformer,  the  scholar, 
and  the  statesman.  Where  will  one  find  a 
more  manly  picture  of  what  a  normal  young 
life  should  be  than  in  the  sermon  called  "The 
Choice  Young  Man,"  who,  according  to  the 
definition,  "is  the  true  young  man.  He  is 
the  human  creature  in  whom  the  best  material 
of  the  world,  which  is  manhood,  exists  in  its 
best  condition,  which  is  youth."  The  ser 
mon  on  "Gamaliel"  delivered  at  the  Temple 
Church,  London,  in  1883,  contains  a  beautiful 
description  of  the  life  of  a  teacher  in  relation 
to  a  pupil  who  becomes  famous.  Such  a 
teacher  is  one  of  those  men  who  give  other 
men  the  chance  to  make  history  rather  than 
make  it  themselves.  They  themselves  are 
almost  of  necessity  relegated  to  obscurity. 
The  very  splendor  of  the  career  of  their 
pupils,  of  which  they  are  the  creating  cause, 
makes  it  impossible  for  the  world  to  see  them ; 
"as  the  flash  of  fire  from  the  gun's  mouth 
and  the  rush  of  the  burning  shell  on  its  tre 
mendous  way  makes  it  impossible  to  see  the 
gun  itself  in  whose  deep  heart  the  power  was 
conceived  and  born," 


PHILLIPS    BROOKS  365 

Of  the  poetic  use  of  the  imagination  in  the 
sermons,  there  are  many  examples,  both  in 
the  structure  of  the  writings  themselves  and 
in  the  details.  The  mind  of  Phillips  Brooks 
was  of  the  poet's  delicate  make.  Noble  poetry 
thrilled  him,  and  through  the  sweep  of  his 
imagination  he  seemed  to  behold  truth  as  a 
reality.  The  vision  and  the  ideal  became  facts 
to  him  through  the  penetrative  and  interpre 
tative  insight  of  the  imagination.  Occasionally 
he  wrote  verse.  Little  of  it  has  ever  been 
printed.  The  best  known  of  his  lines  are  in 
the  "  Christmas  Carol,"  which  he  wrote  for 
the  children  of  his  Sunday-school,  and  were 
then  incorporated  in  "  The  Hymnal "  of  the 
Episcopal  church :  — 

"  O  little  town  of  Bethlehem  ! 

How  still  we  see  thee  lie ; 
Above  thy  deep  and  dreamless  sleep 

The  silent  stars  go  by  ; 
Yet  in  thy  dark  streets  shineth 

The  everlasting  Light ; 
The  hopes  and  fears  of  all  the  years 

Are  met  in  thee  to-night." 

When  Mr.  Brooks  returned  from  his  last  trip 
abroad  in  1892,  he  wrote  a  sonnet  which  has 


366      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

since  been  printed  as  a  slight  prologue  to  the 
volume  "New  Starts  in  Life."  It  is  called 
"The  Waiting  City,"  and  contains  the  image 
of  the  perfect  city  with  the  ideal  life  for  each 
soul  waiting  for  the  entrance  of  the  rightful 
owner :  — 

"  A  city  throned  upon  the  height  behold, 
Wherein  no  foot  of  man  as  yet  has  trod, 
The  City  of  Man's  Life  fulfilled  in  God, 

Bathed  all  in  light,  with  open  gates  of  gold ; 

Perfect  the  City  is  in  tower  and  street ; 
And  there  a  palace  for  each  mortal  waits, 
Complete  and  perfect,  at  whose  outer  gates 

An  Angel  stands  its  occupant  to  greet." 

The  sermons  are  full  of  imagery,  as  in  "The 
Sea  of  Glass  mingled  with  Fire,"  "The  Giant 
with  the  Wounded  Heel,"  "The  Fire  and  the 
Calf,"  "The  Curse  of  Meroz,"  and  "The  Mys 
tery  of  Light."  The  sea  and  the  forests  are 
given  a  dim  kind  of  personality  which  expresses 
itself  in  the  language  of  parable.  The  moun 
tain  rivulet  and  the  great  tides  of  the  ocean 
have  a  message  for  men.  The  noble  building 
or  the  beautiful  jewel  sends  abroad  an  uplift 
ing  influence  and  makes  an  appeal  to  the 
soul.  It  was  this  feeling  that  made  him  bring 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  367 

home  from  India  gorgeous  robes,  because  he 
loved  them  for  their  color,  and  necklaces  of 
native  stones,  because  their  brilliancy  fasci 
nated  him.  As  he  pictured  transcendent  scenes 
of  human  thought  and  imagination,  it  was  most 
natural  for  him  to  use  these  colors  and  jewels 
as  pigments  to  heighten  the  effect.  His  love 
for  art  is  well  illustrated  by  the  intensity  of 
his  feeling  when  he  saw  for  the  first  time 
at  Dresden  the  "Madonna  di  San  Sisto." 
"There  is  no  use,"  he  writes,  "trying  to  tell 
what  a  man  feels  who  has  been  waiting  to 
enjoy  something  for  fifteen  years,  and,  when 
it  conies,  finds  it  something  unspeakably 
beyond  what  he  had  dreamed."  All  this 
love  for  beauty  in  art,  nature,  and  the  soul's 
life  permeates  the  sermons  and  makes  them 
rich  and  brilliant. 

Whatever  one  may  decide  to  be  the  power 
of  Phillips  Brooks  as  a  preacher,  it  must 
include  the  total  impression  of  the  man's 
work  as  that  of  a  great  personality,  doing 
his  duty,  as  he  conceives  it,  in  uplifting 
human  life  by  the  presentation  of  truth.  One 
cannot  omit  his  interpretations  of  history,  as 


368      THE  CLERGY  IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

the  Divine  influence  is  seen  in  the  growth 
and  decay  of  civilization,  or  his  emphasis  on 
life  as  a  gift  of  God  with  the  continuity  of 
God's  influence  throughout  the  individual's 
experience  coming  through  the  crisis  and 
loves  and  consecrations  of  each  mafl's  life  as 
it  enters  "  The  Beautiful  Gate  of  the  Temple," 
which  is  childhood,  and  runs  its  course  to 
"The  Certain  End,"  which  is  death,  the  name 
for  a  new  beginning  in  a  higher  sphere  of 
life.  It  is  impossible  to  consider  a  preacher 
apart  from  his  philosophy  or,  if  you  please, 
his  theology.  In  the  theology  of  the  man  is 
to  be  seen  the  underlying  currents  of  his 
thought,  and  those  controlling  conceptions 
which  color  and  temper  his  intellectual  and 
spiritual  life.  It  has  sometimes  been  said  that 
Phillips  Brooks  was  not  a  theologian.  In  the 
scholastic  and  pedantic  sense  this  may  be  true, 
though  few  men  were  more  familiar  with  the 
history  of  the  church  and  the  doctrinal  con 
troversies.  He  knew  them  at  first  hand,  read 
ing  the  contemporary  books  of  the  special 
discussions  in  the  original  tongues.  But 
above  this  he  was  a  theologian  by  the  use  of 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  369 

his  own  powers  of  reasoning  as  applied  to 
nature,  history,  man's  life,  and  God.  He 
arrived  at  truth  often  by  a  splendid  intuition. 
Knowing  the  facts  of  man's  life,  he  inter 
preted  them,  after  analysis  and  induction  in 
the  light  of  God,  and  stated  his  conclusions 
in  simple  form.  He  nowhere  propounded 
and  defended  a  system  as  the  older  theolo 
gians  did,  but  every  sermon  and  public  ad 
dress  had  in  it  the  essential  ideas  of  his 
theology.  He  may  not  be  called  a  system 
atic  theologian,  but  he  must  be  recognized  as 
a  creative  theologian,  giving  new  thoughts  and 
conceptions  concerning  God's  relations  to  man. 
He  was  influenced,  to  a  greater  or  less  degree, 
by  Coleridge,  Robertson,  Maurice,  and  Kings- 
ley,  in  England,  and  by  Schleiermacher  and 
the  German  poets,  feeling  the  same  impulse 
of  the  mystical  and  philosophical  thought 
which  wrought  in  Carlyle  and  Ruskin. 

Of  the  same  general  nature  as  the  sermons 
were  the  Bohlen  Lectures  delivered  in  Philadel 
phia  in  1879  and  published  under  the  title  "The 
Influence  of  Jesus."  The  lectures  are  four  in 
number,  and  deal  with  the  subject  of  the  influ- 

21 


3/0      THE  CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

cnce  of  Jesus  on  the  moral,  social,  emotional,  and 
intellectual  life  of  man.  In  their  completeness 
and  minute  study  of  the  person  and  work  of  Jesus 
they  constitute  an  interpretative  Life  of  Christ. 
They  do  not  retell  the  story  of  the  outer  life  of 
Jesus,  the  incidents  and  experiences  of  his  career, 
but  they  examine  his  thought  and  methods  of 
teaching,  the  faith  that  lay  behind  the  outward 
act,  his  conception  of  man's  spiritual  nature,  his 
relationship  to  individuals  and  social  forces,  and 
his  idea  of  truth  as  an  intellectual  attainment. 
The  lectures  on  the  influence  of  Jesus  on  the 
social  and  intellectual  life  of  man  are  striking,  as 
is  also  the  one  dealing  with  the  influence  of  Christ 
on  the  emotional  life.  In  this  last-named  lecture 
there  occurs  the  interesting  discussion  whether 
Jesus  had  anything  in  his  nature  of  what  we 
call  the  sense  of  artistic  beauty.  While  acknowl 
edging  the  impetus  given  to  the  growth  of  art 
by  the  church,  which  must  have  come  from  the 
moral  harmony  of  the  person  of  the  founder  of 
the  church,  the  lecturer  is  compelled  to  say  that 
the  great  impression  of  the  life  of  Jesus  must 
always  be  "  of  the  subordinate  importance  of 
those  things  in  which  only  the  aesthetic  nature 


PHILLIPS  BROOKS  371 

finds  its  pleasure.      There  is  no  condemnation 
of  them  in  that  wise,  deep  life.     But  the  fact 
always  must  remain  that  the  wisest,  deepest  life 
that  ever  lived  left  them  on  one  side,  was  satis 
fied  without  them."     Of  the  social  life  of  Jesus 
the  key  to  it  is  discovered  in  the  desire  to  foster 
the  consciousness  of  sonship  by  intercourse  with 
all  who   are   fellow-sons  of   the  same    Father. 
The  social  gospel  appears  in  the  scenes  of  the 
nativity,  where  there  is  a  father,  a  mother,  and 
a  child;    and  Mr.   Brooks  adds:    "  No  religion 
which  began  like  that  could  ever  lose  its  char 
acter.     The  first  unit  of  human  life,  the  soul,  is 
there  in  the  new-born  personality  of  the  child 
hood.     But  the  second  unit  of  human  life,  the 
family,  is  just  as  truly  there  in  the  familiar  rela 
tion  of  husband  and  wife  and  the  sacred,  eternal 
mystery  of  motherhood."     Of  the  patriotism  of 
Jesus  there  is  a  noble  account  which  is  a  defini 
tion  of  the  truest  love  of  country.     "There  is 
something,"    he    said,    "in    the   quality    of   his 
patriotism  which  is   peculiar,  which    separates 
it  from  the  patriotism  of  the  Athenian  or  the 
Roman.     What  is  that  quality  ?     It  is  the  con 
stant  predominance  of  the  sonship  to  God  over 


3/2      THE  CLERGY   IN  AMERICAN   LETTERS 

the  sonship  to  David  in  his  consciousness,  mak 
ing  him  always  eager  for  the  land  of  David, 
because  of  the  interests  of  God  which  it  en 
shrined."  The  favorite  word  of  the  intellectual 
life  of  Jesus  is  truth,  but  truth  with  a  moral 
element  in  it.  It  is  not  simply  search  for  facts, 
but  a  spiritual  appreciation  of  the  deepest  facts, 
the  greatest  men  being  those  in  whom  you 
cannot  separate  their  mental  and  moral  lives. 
In  the  comparison  between  Socrates  and  Jesus  it 
is  shown  that  "  Socrates  argues,  Jesus  reveals." 
When  the  last  conversation  of  Socrates,  as  re 
lated  in  the  Phaedo,  is  put  beside  the  last  inter 
view  of  Jesus  with  his  disciples  the  difference 
between  the  two  is  made  manifest.  Socrates 
has  stoicism  which  enables  him  to  joke  with  his 
friends,  but  to  Jesus  it  is  a  supreme  experience 
of  love  and  a  setting  forth  of  love  as  an  element 
in  truth.  Mr.  Brooks  contended  for  the  sym 
metry  of  truth,  comprehensive  and  harmonious 
in  all  its  parts.  "Truth,  when  it  is  won,"  he 
asserts,  "  is  the  possession  of  the  whole  nature. 
By  the  action  of  the  whole  nature  only  can  it 
be  gained." 

"  The  Influence  of  Jesus  "  is  one  of  the  few 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  373 

attempts  of  Phillips  Brooks  to  write  a  book 
on  a  chosen  subject,  sustained  throughout  the 
whole  of  it.  His  other  books,  with  the  excep 
tion  of  "The  Lectures  on  Preaching,"  are  col 
lections  of  separate  sermons  or  orations.  In 
the  volume  under  consideration  we  have  there 
fore  an  example  of  his  powers  in  consecutive 
thought,  and  in  drawing  with  freedom  upon 
his  knowledge  of  the  New  Testament,  history, 
and  philosophy.  It  contains  the  essence  of 
his  thought,  expressed  with  the  characteristic 
virility  of  his  style. 

It  was  natural  that  Mr.  Brooks,  with  his 
great  reputation  as  a  preacher,  should  be 
asked  to  lend  the  weight  of  his  words  to 
many  public  occasions,  like  anniversaries,  dedi 
cations,  meetings  in  behalf  of  charities,  and 
conferences  of  associations.  His  presence  at 
such  times  always  gave  a  new  interest  to  the 
assemblage;  and  it  was  not  until  he  had  fin 
ished  speaking  that  those  present  felt  that  the 
final  word  had  been  said.  He  dominated  every 
such  meeting,  for  he  not  only  expressed  its 
meaning,  but  put  upon  it  the  most  spiritual 
interpretation.  While  others  might  instruct, 


374      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

and  argue,  and  even  amuse,  he  immediately 
lifted  the  whole  occasion  upon  a  higher  plane, 
and  connected  the  particular  subject  or  event 
with  the  movement  of  the  world-forces  making 
for  righteousness.  He  once  said,  "  Never  fear 
to  bring  the  sublimest  motive  to  the  smallest 
duty,  and  the  most  infinite  comfort  to  the 
smallest  trouble."  This  was  his  own  method. 
He  dealt  with  the  simplest  subject  in  the  pro 
phetic  mood,  which  possessed  him  at  once 
when  he  brought  his  whole  nature  to  consider 
the  subject  assigned  to  him.  His  occasional 
addresses,  therefore,  are  among  his  best  work, 
and  rightfully  take  their  place  by  the  side  of 
the  great  American  orations. 

Some  of  these  addresses  are  collected  in  a 
volume,  called  "  Essays  and  Addresses,"  pub 
lished  in  1894,  after  his  death.  This  book  indi 
cates  the  variety  of  his  gifts,  the  exactness  of 
his  scholarship,  his  knowledge  of  history  and 
literature,  and  his  keen  analysis  of  the  charac 
ters  of  many  of  the  world's  greatest  men. 
"The  Purposes  of  Scholarship,"  delivered  be 
fore  the  Phi  Beta  Kappa  Society  of  Brown's 
University,  in  1869,  is  a  superb  description  of 


PHILLIPS  BROOKS  3/5 

the  ideal  uses  of  scholarship  under  the  inspira 
tion  of  which  the  scholar  performs  his  duty  to 
the  world  as  prophet,  philosopher,  ruler,  and 
saint.  "  Milton  as  an  Educator,"  prepared  for 
the  Massachusetts  Teachers'  Association,  in 
1874,  presents  the  great  poet  in  a  new  light, 
and  adds  to  the  message  of  his  verse  the  great 
principles  of  his  prose  writings.  It  is  shown 
that  this  "typical  Englishman  was  a  school 
master,  and  one  of  the  most  thoughtful  and 
suggestive  reasoners  on  education  that  the  Eng 
lish  race  ever  produced,"  whose  thoughts  on 
ideal  education  were  marked  by  their  natural 
ness,  practicalness,  and  nobleness.  Though  the 
experience  of  Mr.  Brooks  as  a  teacher  was  far 
from  pleasant,  he  always  had  the  most  pro 
found  interest  in  the  subject  of  education. 
Schools  and  colleges  were  a  delight  to  him, 
especially  the  Boston  Latin  School  and  Harvard 
University.  Outside  of  his  own  church  there 
was  no  place  that  held  so  deep  a  place  in  his 
affections  as  Harvard.  He  was  one  of  the 
trustees,  preacher  to  the  University,  and  ap 
pointed  to  the  Plummer  Professorship  of  Morals, 
which  he  declined.  There  was  no  preacher 


3/6      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

whom  the  students  loved  as  they  did  Phillips 
Brooks.  They  were  proud  of  him,  and  claimed 
him  as  their  own.  When  he  conducted  morn 
ing  prayer  in  the  chapel  or  saw  them  privately 
in  Wadsworth  House,  they  felt  that  religion 
must  be  true  if  such  a  man  believed  in  it ;  and 
his  manly  and  straightforward  ideas  appealed 
to  them  as  no  theological  reasoning  would 
have  done.  The  personality  of  the  great  man 
swayed  by  great  thoughts  was  an  object  lesson 
in  vital  religion  which  inspired  them.  The 
Baccalaureate  sermon  by  Phillips  Brooks  was 
always  an  event  of  the  first  importance.  His 
conception  of  the  Harvard  spirit,  the  college 
being  to  him,  as  he  expressed  it,  "  a  living  per 
sonality,"  was  that  of  a  wholesome  and  manly 
courageousness.  The  same  feelings  are  shown 
in  the  oration  delivered  at  the  two  hundred  and 
fiftieth  anniversary  of  the  Boston  Latin  School 
in  1885.  The  finest  historical  sense  is  revealed 
in  drawing  the  pictures  of  the  great  school 
masters  during  this  whole  period,  from  the 
shadowy  Philemon  Pormort  to  Francis  Gard 
ner,  "  the  most  patient  mortal  and  the  most  im 
patient."  "A  great  school  is  a  great  person," 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  377 

he  said,  "  only  it  has  what  we  men  vainly 
desire,  the  privilege  of  growing  mature  without 
any  of  the  weakness  of  growing  old." 

The  two  distinctly  literary  addresses  are 
"Biography"  and  "Literature  and  Life." 
The  first  shows  a  great  range  of  reading  and 
a  delicate  perception  of  the  true  note  in  many 
illustrious  lives ;  and  the  second  a  genuine  ap 
preciation  of  literature  as  the  expression  of 
life.  This  last  thought,  however,  runs  through 
both  the  addresses :  "  Biography  is,  in  its  very 
name,  the  literature  of  life  .  .  .  and  since  the 
noblest  life  on  the  earth  is  always  human  life, 
the  literature  which  deals  with  human  life 
must  always  be  the  noblest  literature ; "  and 
again :  "  Life  comes  before  literature  as  the 
material  always  comes  before  the  work.  To 
own  and  recognize  this  priority  of  life  is  the 
first  need  of  literature.  Literature  which  does 
not  utter  a  life  already  existent,  more  funda 
mental  than  itself,  is  shallow  and  unreal." 

The  same  delightful  literary  quality  appears 
in  the  address  at  the  celebration  by  the  Evan 
gelical  Alliance  of  the  four  hundredth  anni 
versary  of  the  birth  of  Martin  Luther.  This 


3/8      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

was  delivered  in  New  York  City  in  1883.  It 
shows  more  than  an  accurate  knowledge  of 
the  history  of  Luther  and  the  Reformation ; 
it  enters  into  the  spirit  of  the  man  and  the 
movement,  and  is  full  of  splendid  generaliza 
tions  that  seem  to  embody  the  total  signifi 
cance  of  the  whole  epoch.  In  the  personality 
of  Luther,  "the  moralist  and  the  mystic,"  is 
found  the  secret  of  his  power.  "  Some  men 
are  events,"  the  speaker  said ;  "  it  is  not  what 
they  say  or  what  they  do,  but  what  they  are, 
that  moves  the  world.  Luther  declared  great 
truths ;  he  did  great  deeds ;  and  yet  there  is 
a  certain  sense  in  which  his  words  and  deeds 
are  valuable  only  as  they  show  him,  as  they 
made  manifest  a  son  of  God  living  a  strong, 
brave,  clear-sighted  human  life."  It  is  in  this 
speech  that  the  striking  illustration  occurs 
about  Luther  and  Cromwell  as  the  two  men 
"  on  whom,  more  than  on  any  others,  the  great 
gates  seem  to  turn  and  open  which  let  the 
race  through  from  the  old  world  into  the 
new."  The  love  that  Phillips  Brooks  had  for 
the  sterner  men  of  history,  those  uncompromis 
ing  men  who  faced  opposition  and  carried  their 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  3/9 

point  at  the  cost  of  a  revolution,  is  nowhere 
better  illustrated  than  in  his  speech  "  On  the 
Landing  of  the  Pilgrims  "  at  the  dinner  of  the 
New  England  Society  in  Brooklyn  in  1892. 
Even  here  he  could  not  shake  himself  free 
from  the  homiletical  spirit.  As  a  greeting  to 
the  New  England  men  he  quotes  from  St. 
James  the  phrase,  "to  the  Twelve  Tribes 
which  are  scattered  abroad,"  and  he  finds  the 
text  of  his  speech  in  Genesis :  " '  Out  of  the 
Garden  of  Eden  there  came  forth  a  river '  and 
from  thence  it  was  parted  and  divided  into 
four  heads  like  a  Puritan  sermon."  In  his 
treatment,  the  four  rivers  soon  became  the 
streams  of  religious  liberty,  popular  govern 
ment,  universal  education,  and  the  trusteeship 
of  the  world,  which  he  considered  the  gifts  of 
Puritanism.  "There  is  always  showing  itself 
out  of  the  depths  of  Puritanism,"  he  said, 
"  the  great  public  spirit  which  meddles  with  the 
things  of  all  the  earth  and  which  will  show  its 
force  when  that  force  is  called  for.  It  stands 
like  a  rusty  gun  in  a  corner  of  the  room  ;  but 
let  no  one  ever  fool  with  Puritanism,  thinking 
it  is  not  loaded,  for  by  and  by  it  will  go  off." 


380      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Few  men  enjoyed  so  fully  the  adventures 
and  irresponsible  wanderings  into  strange 
places  as  he  did.  After  his  first  extended 
journey,  in  1865,  which  included  a  visit  to 
the  Holy  Land,  he  went  abroad  every  few 
years  for  rest  and  observation.  A  trip  abroad 
was  to  him  not  only  the  "nicest,  largest,  and 
pleasantest  life  in  the  world,"  it  gave  him  an 
opportunity  to  see  men  in  various  stages  of 
development,  to  learn  their  customs  and  moods, 
to  come  personally  in  contact  with  history,  to 
refresh  his  mind  with  new  beauties  and  ideas, 
to  meet  men  who  were  doing  important  work 
in  the  world,  and  to  give  him  a  grasp  of  life, 
both  genuine  and  universal.  Any  one  who 
enjoys  his  sermons  must  see  how  much  they 
gained  in  picturesqueness  and  brilliancy  from 
the  experiences  of  foreign  travel.  Many  of 
his  most  charming  friendships  came  from  his 
English  and  continental  visits.  Dean  Stanley, 
Canon  Farrar,  and  Tennyson  were  seen  in 
their  own  homes,  and  he  was  a  welcome  guest 
at  Westminster  and  Farringford.  Tennyson 
used  to  read  to  him  his  poems,  and  enjoyed 
his  large  and  healthy  view  of  things.  "The 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  381 

more  my  father  saw  of  him,"  says  Hallam 
Tennyson,  "the  more  he  reverenced  his  cheer 
ful  Christianity,  his  hard  work  in  the  cause  of 
truth,  and  his  common-sense  criticism  of  men 
and  public  affairs.  Not  less  high  was  the 
regard  by  the  Bishop." 

The  intense  pleasure  of  Mr.  Brooks  in 
foreign  travel  is  revealed  in  his  letters  to 
his  family,  which  have  been  preserved  in 
that  most  delightful  volume  the  "Letters  of 
Travel."  It  contains  the  full  and  descriptive 
letters,  which  he  wrote  with  characteristic 
regularity,  of  his  visits  to  many  lands.  He 
simply  recorded  his  impressions  as  he  went 
from  place  to  place,  with  a  comment  here 
and  a  bit  of  local  color  there.  When  one 
reads  them,  it  is  like  being  his  travelling  com 
panion.  They  are  unconventional  and  frank. 
The  quality  that  one  finds  in  them  is  that  of 
a  perfectly  serious  man  who  gives  vent  to 
the  lighter  sides  of  his  nature,  and  revels 
with  boyish  delight  in  old  ruins,  ancient 
cities,  curious  habits,  and  harmless  adventures. 
Lowell,  once  walking  with  a  friend,  saw  a 
building  with  the  sign  upon  it,  "  Home  for 


382      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

Incurable  Children,"  and  remarked,  "They'll 
take  me  there  some  day."  The  same  fresh 
ness  of  youth  with  its  unexpectedness  and 
curiosity  were  displayed  by  Phillips  Brooks 
in  his  trips  abroad.  The  letters  show  how 
much  he  had  of  playfulness  and  humor. 
"When  the  little  children  in  Venice  want  to 
take  a  bath,"  he  wrote  to  one  of  his  nieces, 
"they  just  go  down  to  the  front  steps  of  the 
house  and  jump  off  and  swim  in  the  street." 
When  sending  home  money  for  a  Christmas 
present,  he  wrote  to  the  same  little  girl,  "  You 
must  ask  yourself  what  you  want,  but  without 
letting  yourself  know  about  it,  and  get  it,  too, 
and  put  it  in  your  stocking,  and  be  very  much 
surprised  when  you  find  it  there."  The  letters 
have,  however,  excellent  bits  of  description,  as 
when  he  writes  about  a  night  at  the  House 
of  Commons.  "  It  was  one  of  the  great  nights 
of  the  Reform  Bill,"  he  said,  "the  best  men 
on  both  sides  spoke :  Gladstone,  calm,  cool, 
clear,  and  courteous ;  Disraeli,  jerky,  spiteful, 
personal,  very  telling ;  Bright,  honest,  solid, 
indignant  with  the  trickery  and  meanness  of 
the  opposition ;  Mill,  who  holds  people  by 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  383 

sheer  power  of  thought,  as  I  have  hardly  ever 
seen  any  man  do."  Of  peoples  and  cities 
there  are  good  character  sketches.  Edinburgh 
was  "the  queen  of  cities,  the  most  romantic, 
picturesque,  un-American,  old-world  town  that 
ever  was."  The  Germans  were  "frank,  kind, 
sociable,  and  hearty.  They  give  you  an  idea 
of  a  people  with  ever  so  much  yet  to  do  in 
the  world,  capable  of  much  fresh  thought  and 
action,"  while  "Austria  really  seems  to  be  no 
nation  at  all,  made  up,  as  it  were,  of  a  heap 
of  people  and  languages  which  have  no  asso 
ciation  with  each  other."  The  Norwegians 
were  "a  most  thrifty,  decent,  poverty-stricken 
people,  perfectly  honest,  and  not  at  all  hand 
some."  One  cannot  omit  the  account  of  the 
Mohammedan  Lent  as  it  is  observed  by  the 
men  who  "fast  all  the  daytime  and  carry 
on  all  night.  Their  worst  privation  is  from 
tobacco.  It  is  terrible  to  go  through  the 
bazaars  and  see  the  poor  old  fellows  looking 
so  melancholy  and  cross,  holding  their  pipes 
all  ready  filled,  awaiting  the  sunset  to  light 
up."  This  privation  of  smoking  must  have 
seemed  a  great  one  to  Mr.  Brooks,  for  once, 


384      THE   CLERGY   IN   AMERICAN   LETTERS 

when  visiting  Windsor  Castle,  he  was  com 
pelled,  because  there  was  no  smoking  room, 
to  sit  under  the  open  chimney  in  the  high 
and  wide  fireplace  and  enjoy  his  cigar,  let 
ting  the  smoke  ascend  without  contaminating 
the  air  breathed  by  royalty.  The  letters,  as 
a  whole,  are  like  the  man,  most  human,  and 
filled  with  the  exuberance  of  a  nature  that 
hated  artificiality  and  cant,  but  loved  the  whole 
some  pleasures  which  increased  the  strenuous- 
ness  and  impetus  of  manly  action. 

The  life  of  Phillips  Brooks  in  its  varied 
aspect  was  that  of  a  stalwart  American  citizen 
who  won  the  affection  and  appreciation  of  his 
generation  by  the  earnestness  of  his  life  as  a 
tolerant  and  inspiring  leader  in  all  things  that 
make  for  the  best  interests  of  a  nation.  He 
was  a  preacher,  but  he  was  also  a  marked  per 
sonality,  who  impressed  himself  upon  the  time, 
and  will  ever  be  remembered  as  a  representa 
tive  American  to  whom  men  will  gladly  refer, 
when  they  try  to  point  out  the  possibilities  of 
American  manhood.  When  he  died  the  city 
of  Boston  went  into  mourning,  and  the  nation 
honored  him  as  few  men  have  been  remem- 


PHILLIPS   BROOKS  385 

bered.  The  strong  young  Harvard  men  who 
acted  as  pall-bearers,  and  bore  him  aloft  upon 
their  shoulders  to  the  altar  of  Trinity  Church, 
which  is  his  monument,  were  simply  represen 
tatives  of  the  vast  numbers  of  men  whose  lives 
were  truer  and  nobler  because  he  lived.  As 
an  example  of  the  influence  of  the  American 
clergy  in  the  nineteenth  century,  no  more  fit 
ting  man  could  be  selected. 


2C 


INDEX 


Abbott,  Jacob,  48,  76 ;  the  Rollo 
books  of,  on  education,  77; 
historical  books  of,  78,  79,  80. 

Abbott,  J.  S.  C.,  48;  books  of, 
72,  73 ;  his  aim  in  writing,  73  ; 
on  slavery,  75. 

Abolitionists,  clergy  among,  32, 
216 ;  their  opinion  of  Webster, 
251 ;  Bushnell  on  the,  277. 

"A  Bumble  Bee's  Thoughts  on 
the  Plan  and  Purposes  of  the 
Universe,"  Parker's,  243. 

Adams,  Henry,  9. 

Adams,  John,  16,  70,  196. 

Adams,  J.  Q.,  192,  214,  244. 

Adams,  Samuel,  68. 

Addison,  Rev.  W.  D.,  24. 

"Additional  Speeches,"  Parker's, 

257. 

"  A  Discourse  of  Matters  Pertain 
ing  to  Religion,"  Parker's,  236, 

237- 
"A   Dissertation  on  the  Bible," 

Dwight's,  159. 
"A  Fable  for  Critics,"  Lowell's, 

229. 

"A  Face  Illumined,"  Roe's,  112. 
"  A  Family  Tablet,"  A.  Holmes's, 

66. 
"Airs   of  Palestine,"   Pierpont's, 

85,  245- 
Alabama,  255. 
Albany,  259. 
Alcott,  241. 
Alexander,    Archibald,   119;    as 


theologian,    137;    writings    of, 

140. 

Alexandria,  256,  342,  344. 
Allen,  Thomas,  19. 
Allston,  Washington,  107,  192. 
Alsop,  Richard,  161. 
American    Antiquarian    Society, 

64. 
American   Colonization   Society, 

139. 
American  hymnology,  the  growth 

of,  97  ;  writers  of,  97-102. 
Andover  Academy,  343. 
Andover  Theological  Seminary, 

185,  293. 

Andrews,  James  O.,  31. 
"  An      Essay     on     the     Stage," 

Dwight's,    182. 
"  Annals       of      America,"      A« 

Holmes's,   61. 
Anselm,  298. 
Antioch  College,  289. 
"Antony  Brade,"  92. 
Appleton,  Nathaniel,  62. 
|  Arbor  Day,  104. 
!  Arminianism,  129. 
Arnold,  Matthew,  109. 
Asbury,  114. 

Atlantic  Monthly,  336,  352. 
Augusta,  Me.,  103. 
Austria,  383. 

Bacon,  Leonard,  100. 
Baird,  Robert,  119. 
Baldwin,  Thomas,  101. 


387 


388 


INDEX 


Bale,  245. 

Ballou,  Hosea,  44;  hymns  of, 
101 ;  writings  of,  141 ;  as  a 
Unitarian,  142;  humor  of,  143. 

Baltimore,  128,  198,  255. 

Baltimore  Herald,  118. 

Bancroft,  George,  121,  262. 

Baptists,  hymns  of,  101 ;  writers 
among,  113;  Professor  Dimon 
on,  117;  theology  of,  117;  mis 
sionary  society  of,  118. 

Barlow,  Joel,  161. 

Barnes,  Albert,  119. 

"  Barriers  Burned  Away,"  Roe's, 
no. 

Bartol,  Cyrus,  293. 

Bass,  Edward,  16. 

Baur,  234,  245. 

Baxter,  Joseph,  26. 

Beecher,  Henry  Ward,  visits 
England,  36;  novels  of,  102; 
home  of,  127 ;  boyhood  of,  304 ; 
early  days,  305 ;  at  Lawrence- 
burg,  306;  early  journalistic 
work  of,  306 ;  called  to  Plym 
outh  Church,  307;  preaches  to 
crowds,  308;  studies  of  men 
and  things,  309;  presence  and 
manner  of,  310;  Dr.  Storrs's 
estimate  of,  311;  theology  of, 
313;  on  evolution,  315-317; 
lectures  at  Yale,  317;  humor 
of,  319;  as  a  journalist,  322; 
an  editor,  324;  writes  "Star 
Papers,"  325 ;  writes  "  Nor 
wood,"  326;  on  slavery,  329; 
as  a  politician,  330;  during 
Civil  War,  331 ;  his  speeches 
in  England,  333-339;  after  the 
Civil  War,  339;  estimate  of, 
340 ;  lectures  of,  356 ;  fame  of, 

358. 

Beecher,  Lyman,  on  duelling,  26 ; 
on  temperance,  27,  126;  influ 


ence  on  Henry  Ward,  304; 
accused  of  heresy,  305 ;  on  loud 
preaching,  320. 

Beethoven  Musical  Society,  271. 

Belknap,  Jeremy,  48;  histories 
of,  54,  55,  56 ;  writes  "  The  For 
resters,"  56,57;  diary  of,  during 
the  Revolution,  59;  writes 
"  Life  of  Isaac  Watts,"  60;  on 
General  Lee,  60. 

Bellows,  Dr.,  107. 

Bennington,  19. 

Berkeley,  Bishop,  49,  196. 

"  Biography,"  Brooks's,  377. 

Birney,  J.  G.,  216,  219,  322. 

Bladensburg,  24. 

Blair,  James,  6. 

Bohlen  Lectures,  369. 

Bonner,  Robert,  326. 

Boston,  129,  130  198  ;  Ministerial 
Association  of,  236 ;  Parker  in, 
245,  246;  fugitive  slaves  in,  252, 
254;  capitalists  of,  254,  255; 
and  Alexandria,  256;  John 
Brown  in,  257 ;  Kansas  Com 
mittee  of,  258 ;  Phillips  Brooks 
in,  342. 

Boston  Gazette,  64. 

Boston  Latin  School,  343,  375. 

Boston  Port  Act,  59. 

Boston  University,  116. 

Brainard,  David,  40. 

Brainard,  John,  100. 

Brattle,  William,  62. 

Breckenridge,  John,  119, 124. 

Bridgeport,  285. 

Bright,  John,  382. 

Brook  Farm,  241,  245. 

Brooklyn,  308,  322. 

Brooklyn  Fourteenth  Regiment, 

33* 

Brooks,  Phillips,  a  representative 
preacher,  132;  Holmes's  esti 
mate  of,  241;  elected  bishop, 


INDEX 


342 ;  birth  of,  342 ;  early  life  of, 
342 ;  in  college,  343  ;  teacher  in 
Latin  School,  343;  early  writ 
ings,  344;  on  slavery,  345;  at 
Harvard  Commemoration, 
350;  extemporaneous  speeches 
of,  351 ;  as  a  preacher,  353-356 ; 
his  "  Lectures  on  Preaching," 
356 ;  sermons  of,  359 ;  preaches 
in  Westminster  Abbey,  362; 
poems  of,  365;  delivers  the 
Bohlen  lectures,  369;  theology 
of,  369 ;  speaks  on  various 
occasions,  372;  his  love  for 
Harvard,  375 ;  Baccalaureate 
sermons  of,  376;  literary  ad 
dresses  of,  377;  on  Martin 
Luther,  378;  addresses  the 
New  England  Society,  379  ;  his 
love  of  foreign  travel,  380; 
Tennyson  on,  380;  his  "Let 
ters  of  Travel,"  381;  visits 
House  of  Commons,  382;  es 
timate  of,  384;  at  Windsor 
Castle,  384 ;  death  of,  384. 

Brown,  John,  raid  of,  230,  249;  in 
Boston,  257,  258  ;  execution  of, 
258 ;  Parker  on,  258 ;  chains 
of,  311. 

Brown,  J.  N.,  101. 

Brown  University,  7,  117;  Way- 
land,  president  of,  144 ;  oration 
of  Phillips  Brooks  at,  374. 

Browning,  363. 

Brownson,  Augustus,  125. 

Bfownson's  Qtiarterly  Review, 
125- 

Buckminster,  Joseph,  22. 

Bull  Run,  380. 

Bunker  Hill,  164,  189,  284. 

"  Burden  of  Dumah,"  Dwight's, 
181. 

Burgess,  George,  101,  135. 

Burns,  Anthony,  255. 


Burr,  Aaron,  25,  26. 

Bushnell,  Horace,  32,  125;  de 
fended  by  Porter,  127;  frag 
ment  of  his  biography,  268; 
early  days  of,  270;  influence  of, 
270;  in  college,  271;  news 
paper  work  of,  272 ;  travels 
abroad,  273  ;  writes  to  the  Pope, 
273;  sermons  of,  275;  on 
slavery,  276 ;  his  Fast  Day  ser 
mon,  277;  on  Bull  Run,  280; 
on  parochial  schools,  281 ; 
secures  a  park  in  Hartford, 
283 ;  speech  before  the  New 
England  Society,  286;  on 
Womans'  Suffrage,  288 ;  reli 
gious  writings  of,  290-293; 
speaks  at  Yale,  Andover,  and 
Harvard,  293  ;  writes  "  Chris 
tian  Nurture,"  294;  writes 
"  God  in  Christ,"  297  ;  heresy 
of,  298 ;  his  "  Moral  Use  of 
Dark  Things,"  300 ;  humor  of, 
301 ;  estimate  of,  302 ;  fame  of, 
358. 

Butler,  General,  330. 

Byles,  Mather,  2,  loo. 

Cabot,  J.  E.,  243. 

Cassarea,  109. 

"  Caleb  Williams,"  Godwin's,  197. 

Calhoun,  John  C.,  323. 

California,  129,  270,  272,  281. 

Canada,  254. 

Carlyle,  245,  273,  369. 

Carol,  John,  123. 

Cartwright,  Peter,  115. 

Channing,  Henry,  194. 

Channing,  William  Ellery,  on 
War  of  1812,  22;  on  temper 
ance,  28;  on  the  abolitionists, 
32 ;  at  the  ordination  of  Jared 
Sparks,  128 ;  a  conservative, 
129;  literary  work  of,  191; 


390 


INDEX 


Renan  on,  191;  Martineau  on, 
192;  birth  of,  193;  tutor  in 
Virginia,  193 ;  early  life  of,  193 ; 
classmates  of,  194;  in  New 
London,  194;  his  moral  purity, 
195 ;  books  that  he  read,  196 ; 
in  Richmond,  196;  enters  the 
ministry,  197 ;  in  Federal  Street 
Church,  198;  appearance  of, 
199;  as  a  preacher,  199;  the 
ology  of,  200 ;  answers  Calvin 
ism,  201 ;  in  the  Unitarian  con 
troversy,  202;  on  associations, 
203 ;  characteristics  of,  204- 
206;  writings  of,  206;  on  Mil 
ton,  Napoleon,  and  Fenelon, 
206;  on  poetry,  207;  on  "  Na 
tional  Literature,"  210;  on  pol 
itics,  213;  a  Federalist,  214; 
his  idea  of  the  Union,  215; 
on  slavery,  217 ;  on  emancipa 
tion,  218;  on  division  of  the 
Union,  221 ;  on  the  duty  of  the 
free  States,  222 ;  on  social  re 
form,  222;  on  war,  224;  on 
education,  227;  death  of,  227. 

Channing,  William  H.,  130,  241, 
244,  245. 

Chapin,  E.  H.,  101. 

Chautauqua,  116. 

Cheever,  Gospel  Preacher,  333. 

Christian  Examiner,  130,  206. 

"  Christian  Nurture,"  Bushnell's, 
294-296. 

Church  of  England,  92,  131. 

Cincinnati  Journal,  306,  322. 

Civil  War,  36,  no,  245,  259,  278, 

330.  331.  339-  345.  350- 
Clark,  Bishop,  341. 
Clarke,  J.  F.,  130. 
Clay,  Henry,  26;    letter  to,  216; 

Channing    to,    220;    Bushnell 

refers  to,  278,  323. 
Cleaveland,  Aaron,  30. 


Cobbe,  Frances  Power,  259. 
Coke,  114. 
Coleridge,  369. 
Colgate  University,  117. 
College  of  California,  282. 
Columbia  University,  7,  44. 
Columbian  Magazine,  56. 
Concord,  245. 
Congregational    Church,    clergy 

of,  44;    hymn-writers  of,   100; 

hymns  of,  101 ;  writers  of,  113; 

theology  of,   125 ;    and  Unita- 

rianism,  128. 
Connecticut,  270;    Bushnell  on, 

283-285 ;  virtues  of,  285. 
Connecticut    Academy    of   Arts 

and  Sciences,  185. 
Continental  Congress,  16. 
Cooke,  Samuel,  13. 
Cornwall-on-the-Hudson,  no. 
Cornwallis,  General,  160. 
Cotton,  John,  343. 
Cowper,  164. 
Coxe,  A.  C.,  85,  loi,  136. 
Crabbe,  326. 
Craft,  Ellen,  253. 
Craft,  William,  252,  253. 
Cromwell,  Oliver,  378. 
Croswell,  William,  85 ;  poetry  of, 

89-92 ;    hymns   of,    99 ;    as    a 

poet,  132. 
Cuba,  272. 

Dartmouth  College,  7. 
"  Darwinism,"  Hodges's,  148. 
Davies,  Samuel,  5,  100,  119. 
Denham,  Sir  John,  171. 
Denominational    literature,    113, 

137. 

De  Tocqueville,  54. 
De  Wette,  234,  245. 
Dewey,  Orville,  129. 
Dickinson,  119. 
Dickinson  College,  116. 


INDEX 


391 


Disraeli,  382. 

Dixwell,  49,  51. 

Doane,  G.  W.,  85,  99,  IOI. 

Dollinger,  Dr.,  113. 

"  Domestic  Slavery,"  Wayland's, 
144. 

Dresden,  367. 

Drew  Theological  Seminary,  116. 

Duche,  Rev.  M.,  16. 

Duelling,  23,  24. 

Duffield,  George,  99. 

"Duty  of  the  Free  States,"  Chan- 
ning's,  222. 

Dwight,  Timothy,  schools  of,  5 ; 
at  Yale,  7,  52, 176 ;  songs  of,  20 ; 
on  the  War  of  1812,  22;  on 
duelling,  25  ;  a  poet,  85  ;  hymns 
of,  too,  175 ;  birth  of,  157 ;  edu 
cation  of,  157 ;  at  college,  158  ; 
early  writings  of,  159 ;  a  chap 
lain,  159;  poems  of,  160;  Alsop 
on,  161 ;  his  "  The  Conquest  of 
Canaan,"  162;  in  the  legisla 
ture,  165;  in  Greenfield,  165; 
his  poem  to  Colonel  Humphrey, 
166;  writes  "The  Triumph  of 
Infidelity,"  167;  criticism  of, 
168;  writes  "Greenfield  Hill," 
170 ;  on  slavery,  173  ;  describes 
the  country  minister,  174; 
minor  poems  of,  175;  his 
method  of  writing,  177;  the 
ology  of,  178-180;  on  George 
Washington,  180;  on  Jeffer 
son,  181 ;  offers  a  Thanks 
giving,  181 ;  writes  on  the  stage, 
182;  his  position  in  New  Eng 
land,  184;  writes  "Travels," 
185 ;  South ey's  opinion  of,  185 ; 
note-books  of,  186;  death  of 
190;  estimate  of,  190. 

Earl  of  Shaftsbury,  223. 
Eaton,  Rev.  Mr.,  2. 


Eaton,  Samuel,  19. 

Edinburgh,  335,  337,  383. 

Edwards,  Jonathan,  39,  40,  125, 
138,  139.  I57,  I79<  20°. 

Eliot,  William,  34. 

Ellsworth,  Oliver,  189. 
Elsie  Venner,"  Holmes's,  66. 

Embury,  Phillip,  114. 

Emerson,  Joseph,  194. 

Emerson,  R.  W.,  ancestors  of, 
4;  on  the  abolitionists,  33;  on 
Parker,  230;  resigns  his  paiish, 
240;  his  triendship  for  Parker, 
241 ;  leaves  the  ministry,  244 ; 
writings  of,  244;  at  Concord, 

245- 

Emmons,  Nathaniel,  126. 

Episcopal  Church,  15;  hymn- 
writers  of,  loo-ioi ;  literature 
of,  131 ;  theology  of,  132 ; 
prayer-book  of,  136;  Phillips 
Brooks  enters,  342;  hymnal 

of,  365- 
Episcopal    Theological    School, 

Cambridge,  148. 
Erskine,  John,  139,  149. 
"Essays     and     Addresses," 

Brooks's,  374. 
Evangelical  Alliance,  377. 
"Evolution and  Religion,"  Beech- 

er's,  315. 
Ewald,  245. 

Fairfax,  General,  263. 
Faneuil  Hall,  250,  255. 
Farrar,  Canon,  380. 
Farringford,  380. 
"  Feast   of   the   Sacred    Heart," 

Ryan's,  96. 

Federalists,  II,  14,  215. 
Federal  Street  Society,  227. 
Fenelon,  206,  209. 
Ferguson,  196. 
Fillmore,  Millard,  253,  262. 


392 


INDEX 


Fiske,  Wilbur,  115. 
Florence,  230,  259,  266,  361. 
Fort  Sumter,  331. 
Fowler,  305. 

Franklin,  Benjamin, 48, 49, 71, 336. 
Franklin,  Mass.,  125. 
Fremont  Campaign,  330. 
Fremont  Park,  Philadelphia,  120. 
French,  Rev.  Mr.,  2. 
French  Revolution,  181,  201. 
Frothingham,  O.  B.,  82. 
Fugitive  Slave  Bill,  32,  250. 
Fuller,  Margaret,  241. 
Fuller,  Richard,  117. 

Gage,  General,  59. 

Gallaudet,  Th.,  100. 

Gardiner,  J.  S.  J.,  23. 

Gardner,  Francis,  343,  376. 

Garfield,  President,  151. 

Garrettson,  114,  146. 

General  Association  of  Connecti 
cut,  298. 

Georgetown,  123. 

Germans,  poets  of,  265  ;  Parker's 
knowledge  of,  233 ;  description 
of,  383- 

Germany,  121 ;  philosophy  of, 
233;  thought  of,  234;  Parker 
in,  245. 

Gettysburg,  329. 

Gladstone,  382. 

Glasgow,  335. 

"  God  in  Christ,"  Bushnell's,  297. 

Goethe,  234. 

Goffe,  49,  51. 

Goldsmith,  Oliver,  171. 

Grant,  General,  339. 

Greenfield,  Conn.,  6, 165,  167,  177, 
178. 

"Greenfield  Hill,"  Dwight's,  85, 

170,  175- 

Griswold,  A.  V.,  101. 
Griswold,  R.  W.,  85. 


Haeckel,  314. 

Halle,  148. 

Hallock,  Moses,  5. 

Hamilton,  Alexander,  16,  25,  26, 

155- 

Hamilton,  Sir  William,  121. 
Harper's  Ferry,  249. 
Harper's  Magazine,  74. 
Harris,  S.  S.,  249. 
Hart,  Levi,  30. 
Hartford,    270,    272,    282,    285, 

293- 

Hartford  Convention,  22,  214. 

Hartford  Central  Association,  298. 

Harvard  University,  6,  44;  Uni- 
tarianism  in,  129;  Channing  in, 
194;  Parker  in,  232;  Divinity 
School  of,  293  ;  Bushnellat,297; 
Phillips  Brooks  at,  342 ;  Com 
memoration  Service  at,  350; 
Phillips  Brooks's  love  for,  375 ; 
young  men  of,  at  Phillips 
Brooks's  funeral,  385. 

Hastings,  Thomas,  loo. 

Hawkes,  F.  L.,  134. 

Hawthorne,  Nathaniel,  2. 

Heber,  Bishop,  88. 

Hedge,  F.  H.,  101,  130,  241. 

Hegel,  148. 

Heidelberg,  148. 

Heine,  265. 

Hemenway,  Moses,  30. 

Henry,  Patrick,  5. 

Herbert,  George,  89. 

Highland  Falls,  N.Y.,  no. 

"  His  Sombre  Rival,"  Roe's,  112. 

"  Historical  Estimate  of  Connec 
ticut,"  Bushnell's,  283. 

"  History  of  the  Civil  War," 
Abbott's,  75. 

"  History  of  New  England,"  Pal 
frey's,  81. 

Hobart  College,  133. 

Hobart,  J.  H.,  132. 


INDEX 


393 


Hodge,  Charles,  119, 137, 146-148. 

Hollis  Street  Society,  242. 

Holmes,  Abiel,  home  of,  5 ;  ser 
mons  of,  48,  61 ;  histories  of, 
63,  64;  founds  societies,  64; 
preaches  on  the  forefathers  of 
New  England,  65;  on  Wash 
ington,  65;  poetry  of,  66, 
125. 

Holmes,  O.  W.,  home  of,  4; 
childhood  of,  60 ;  on  Beecher, 
336,  339;  on  Phillips  Brooks, 

341- 

Hooker,  Thomas,  62. 

Hopkins,  J.  H.,  35,  134. 

Hopkins,  Lemuel,  161. 

Hopkins,  Mark,  7,  125;  a  theo 
logian,  137;  writings  of,  151- 

153- 

Hopkins,  Samuel,  125,  137;  as  a 
theologian,  137;  doctrines  of, 
138;  on  slavery,  139;  influ 
ences  Channing,  193;  Chan- 
ning's  opinion  of,  200. 

Hopkinsianism,  126,  179. 

Hughes,  Archbishop,  36,  123. 

Hume,  David,  167,  168,  179. 

Humphrey,  Colonel,  165. 

Hunter,  William,  101. 

Hutchinson,  Governor,  50. 

Ide,  G.  B.,  101. 

India,  361,  367. 

Indiana  Journal,  307. 

Indianapolis,  306. 

Intuitional  School  of  Philosophy, 

238. 
Italy,  231,  260,  273. 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  20,  21,  24. 
Johnson,  Samuel,  4. 
Jouffroy,  245. 
Journal  of  Commerce,  272. 
Judd,  Sylvester,  102,  103-106. 


Judson,  Adoniram,  101,  118. 
"  Julian,"  Ware's,  108. 

Kansas,  257,  330. 
Kansas-Nebraska  Bill,  32. 
Kansas  War,  249,  257,  258. 
Kant,  234. 

Kenrick,  F.  P.,  123,  134. 
Kent,  324. 

King,  Thomas  Star,  34,  129. 
King's  Chapel,  Boston,  97. 
Kingsley,  Charles,  102,  369. 
Kneeland,  Abner,  101,  143. 
Knickerbocker  Magazine,  106. 
Know-nothing  movement,  124. 

Lafayette,  72. 

Lamartine,  73. 

Lane  Theological  Seminary,  126. 

Law,  Governor,  49. 

Lawrenceburg,  306. 

"  Lectures  on  Moral  Education," 

Abbott's,  77. 
"Lectures     on    Preaching," 

Beecher's,  318-321. 
"Lectures    on    Preaching," 

Brooks's,  356. 
"  Lectures    on  Washington  All- 

ston,"  Ware's,  107. 
Lee,  General  Charles,  60. 
Leiber,  324. 
Leighton,  45. 
Leland,  John,  99. 
"  Letters  from  Palmyra,"  Ware's, 

108. 
"  Letters   of   Travel,"    Brooks's, 

381. 

"  Life  of  Christ,"  Beecher's,  339. 
"  Life    of   Ezra    Stiles,"    by    A. 

Holmes,  62. 
"  Life  of  Isaac  Watts,"  Belknap's, 

60. 
Lincoln,  Abraham,  35,  339,  346, 

349- 


394 


INDEX 


Litchfield,  Conn.,  270. 

"  Literature  and  Life,"  Brooks's, 

377- 

Liverpool,  130,  335,  337. 

Locke,  4,  196,  209. 

"Log  College,"  Alexander's,  140. 

London,  273,  335. 

London  Times,  335. 

Longfellow,  H.  VV.,  101. 

Longfellow,  Samuel,  101. 

Louisiana,  255. 

Louisville,  124. 

Lowell,  Dr.,  4. 

Lowell,  J.  R.,  his  Harvard  ad 
dress,  I ;  home  of,  4  ;  on  Pal 
frey,  81;  on  Parker,  229;  his 
boyishness,  381. 

Lowell  Lectures,  133. 

Lowell,  R.  T.  S.,  85;  poetry  of, 
92;  during  Civil  War,  94; 
novels  of,  102;  a  poet,  132. 

Luther,  Martin,  229,  293,  377. 

Lutherans,  113. 

Lyman,  Phinehas,  189. 

Madison,  Bishop,  21. 

Maine,  135.  320. 

Manchester,  333,  336. 

Mann,  Horace,  227. 

"  Margaret,"  Judd's,  103,  104-106. 

Marshall,  Chief  Justice,  16. 

Martineau,  192,  240,  245,  253. 

Mason,  Mr.,  338. 

Massachusetts  Historical  Society 

64. 
Massachusetts  Sabbath   School 

294. 
Massachusetts  Teachers'  Associ 

ation,  375. 
Massachusetts  Temperance  So 

ciety,  28. 

Mather,  Cotton,  26,  39,  125. 
Maurice,  F.  D.,  149,  369. 
Mayhew,  13,  17,  68. 


McCosh,  James,  7,  137,  153-156. 
Mcllvane,  Bishop,  36,  37. 
Meade,  William,  35,  133. 
Melodeon,  246. 

Mercersburg,  131. 

Methodist  Church,  on  slavery, 
30;  division  in,  31;  abolition 
ists  among,  32;  Lincoln  on, 
36;  preachers  of,  43;  hymns 
of,  101;  writers  of,  113;  theol 
ogy  of,  114-117. 

Mexican  War,  221. 

Mexico,  220. 

Michigan,  136. 

Middlebury  College,  282. 

Mill,  J.  S.,  155,  382. 
Milton    as    an    Educator," 
Brooks's,  375. 

Milton,  John,  206,  208. 

Minnesota,  272. 

Missouri  Compromise,  n,  278. 

Moody,  Rev.  Joseph,  2. 

"  Moral  Science,"  Alexander's 
140. 

"  Moral  Uses  of  Dark  Things," 
Bushnell's,  300. 

More,  Archbishop,  70. 

Muhlenburg,  A.  W.,  99,  101,  135. 

Mulford,    Elisha,    137,    148,    149, 

15°. 151- 

Murray,  John,  43,  141. 
Murray,  Nicholas,  124. 
Music  Hall,  Boston,  246,  258, 

263. 

"  Nahant,"  91. 

Napoleon,  21,  206-209. 

"  National     Literature,"     Chan- 

ning's,  210. 
"  Near  to  Nature's  Heart,"  Roe's, 

112. 

Nelson,  David,  119. 
Newburyport,  16. 
New  England  Society,  274,  286. 


INDEX 


395 


New  England  Theology,  138. 
New  Haven,  178,  272. 
New  London,  194. 
Newport,  29,  139,  193,  207. 
Newton  Theological  Institution, 

117. 
New  York,  272,  286,  308,  309,  330, 

338,  378. 

New  York  Evangelist,  298. 

New  York  Independent,  322. 

Niagara  Falls,  189,  207. 

Northampton,  6,  157,  160,  177. 

North  Church,  in  Hartford,  272. 

"  Northern  Iron,"  278. 

Norwegians,  383. 

"Norwood,"  Beecher's,  326-329. 

Nott,  Eliphalet,  President  of 
Union  College,  7 ;  on  duelling, 
25 ;  on  temperance,  27. 

Oberlin,  288. 

"  Ode  on  the  Glory  of  Columbia," 

Dwight's,  160. 
Ohio,  306. 
"  On  the  Landing  of  the  Pilgrims," 

Brooks's,  379. 
Oregon,  273. 
Otey,  Bishop,  35. 
Otis,  James,  17. 
"  Our  Mercies  of  Reoccupation," 

Brooks's,"  346-348. 
Oxford,  325. 

Paine,  Thomas,  21,  142,  179,  281. 

Paley,  45,  141. 

Palfrey,  J.  G.,  48,  80. 

Palmer,  Ray,  99,  100. 

Park  Street  Church,  Boston,  31. 

Parker,  Samuel,  16. 

Parker,  Theodore,  an  abolitionist, 
32;  an  extremist,  129;  Lowell 
on,  229;  prayed  for,  230;  esti 
mate  of,  231 ;  birth  of,  232;  his 
love  for  books,  232 ;  his  knowl 


edge  of  German,  233 ;  his  idea 
of  the  Bible,  234 ;  mental  atti 
tude  of,  235  ;  in  West  Roxbury, 
235;  remains  a  minister,  235; 
refused  exchange  of  pulpits, 
236;  lectures  in  Boston,  236; 
at  the  ordination  of  Mr.  Shack- 
ford,  236;  religious  writings  of, 
237;  on  the  Holy  Communion, 
239;  literary  work  of,  240; 
friends  of,  241 ;  writes  for  The 
Dial,  242;  defends  Pierpont, 
243 ;  journey  abroad  of,  245 ;  as 
a  preacher,  246,  247  ;  preaches 
in  Boston,  246;  his  choice  of 
topics,  248  ;  poem  by,  249 ;  on 
slavery,  249 ;  his  journal,  249 ; 
on  Webster,  250;  on  Zachary 
Taylor,  251;  on  Scriptural  ar 
gument  for  slavery,  252;  mar 
ries  the  Crafts,  253;  diary  of, 
254;  in  Faneuil  Hall,  255; 
during  the  Kansas  War,  257; 
writes  to  Francis  Jackson,  258  ; 
illness  of,  258;  death  of,  259; 
last  words  of,  259 ;  as  a  literary 
man,  261 ;  a  writer  of  letters, 
262;  private  journal  of,  263; 
poems  of,  265,  266 ;  his  letter  to 
George  Ripley,  267. 

Parsons,  General,  159. 

Peace  Society,  224. 

Peck,  J.  M.,  118. 

Peekskill,  326. 

Perry,  W.  S.,  137. 

Peters,  Samuel,  284. 

Phelps,  Austin,  303. 

Philadelphia,  134,  342,  345,  346, 

349,  35°- 

Phillips,  Samuel,  343. 
Phillips,  Wendell,  147,  255. 
"  Philo  :  an  Evangeliad,"  Judd's, 

103. 
Pierpont,  John,  85 ;  his  estimate 


396 


INDEX 


of   Charming,  86 ;    poems  of,  j 
86-88;  on  intemperance,  242; 
Unitarianism  of,  244;  a  chap 
lain,  245. 

Pilate,  109. 

Plymouth  Church,  organized, 
307;  pulpit  of,  309;  twenty- 
fifth  anniversary  of,  311 ;  a 
parishioner  of,  318,  330. 

"  Poems,  Patriotic,  Religious,  and 
Miscellaneous,"  Ryan's,  94. 

"  Poems,  Sacred  and  Secular," 
Croswell's,  90. 

"  Politics  under  the  Law  of  God," 
Bushnell's,  277. 

Pormort,  Philemon,  376. 

Porter,  Noah,  7,  125  ;  writings  of, 
127 ;  defends  Bushnell,  127,  298. 

Portsmouth,  N.H.,  22. 

Potter,  Alonzo,  133-134. 

Prentice,  G.  D.,  124. 

Presbyterians,  10;  clergy  of,  27; 
on  slavery,  30 ;  on  fugitive  slave 
law,  32 ;  hymn-writers  of,  100- 
101 ;  writers  among,  113 ;  theol 
ogy  of,  118  ;  likeness  to  Congre- 
gationalists,  126;  influence  of, 
140 ;  newspaper  of,  322. 

Prescott,  W.  H.,  241. 

Priestley,  Dr.,  71,  179. 

Princeton,  7,  44,  100,  120,  153. 

Princeton  Review,  146,  155,  298, 

352. 
Princeton  Theological  Seminary, 

140,  146. 

"  Probus,"  Ware's,  108. 
Provoost,  Dr.,  70. 
Punch,  153,  336. 
Putnam,  General,  159,  187,  284. 

Quakers,  10 ;  on  slavery,  29 ;  lack 
of  hymns  of,  100 ;  inner  light  of, 
114,  281. 

Quarterly  Review,  185. 


Queen's  College,  Belfast,  153. 
Quincy,  Josiah,  2. 

Randolph,  John,  133,  273. 

"  Reform  against  Nature,"  Bush 
nell's,  288. 

Reid,  120,  196. 

"  Remarks  on  Associations," 
Channing's,  203. 

Renan,  191. 

"  Reverses  Needed,"  Bushnell's, 
280. 

Rhode  Island,  341. 

"  Richard  Edney,  103. 

Richards,  George,  101. 

Richardson,  Professor,  45. 

Richmond,  Va.,  196. 

Ripley,  George,  defends  Roe,  no; 
a  friend  of  Parker,  241 ;  leaves 
the  ministry,  244 ;  Parker's  let 
ter  to,  267. 

Robbins,  Chandler,  101. 

Robertson,  369. 

Robinson,  Edward,  119. 

Roe,  E.  P.,  novels  of,  102;  home 
of,  no;  writings  of,  109-112. 

Roman  Catholic  Church,  writers 
of,  113;  literature  of,  122;  in 
America,  123;  Brownson  in, 
125. 

Rome,  258. 

Rothe,  148. 

Rousseau,  21,  197. 

Ruskin,  369. 

Russell,  Lord  John,  273. 

Russell,  Rev.  Mr.,  51. 

Russia,  338. 

Rutgers  College,  7. 

Rutland,  18. 

Ryan,  J.  J.,  85,  94,  95,  96. 

"  Saint  Luke,"  91. 
San  Francisco,  129. 
Sanitary  Commission,  36. 


INDEX 


397 


Sargent,  J.  T.,  236. 

Schaff,  Phillip,  100,  119,  121. 

Schleiermacher,  234,  238,  369. 

Scotch-Irish  Presbyterians,  44. 

Scotland,  153. 

Scott,  General,  34. 

Sears,  E.  H.,  99,  101. 

Seeker,  Archbishop,  69,  70. 

Seminole  War,  214,  224. 

"  Sermons    for   the    New    Life," 

Bushnell's,  291. 

Seward,  Secretary,  36,  124,  262. 
Shackford,  C.  C.,  230,  236. 
Shadrach,  the  fugitive  slave,  254. 
Shakespeare,  207,  325. 
"  Shall  We  Compromise  ?  "  Beech- 

er's,  323. 

Sharp,  Granville,  139. 
Shedd,  W.  G.  T.,  119,  121. 
Shepard,  12. 
Sherman,  Judge,  190. 
Sigourney,  Mrs.,  90. 
Sims,  Thomas,  254. 
"  Slavery,"  Channing's,  216. 
Smith,  H.  B.,  119,  120. 
Smith,  S.  F.,  99. 
Smith,  William,  17,  132. 
"  Society  for  the  Propagation  of 

the  Gospel,"  57,  68. 
South  Boston,  230. 
South  Carolina,  254. 
Spalding,  M.  J.,  124. 
Sparks,  Jared,  198. 
Spencer,  Herbert,  155,  314. 
Sprague,  W.  B.,  119. 
Stanley,  Dean,  352,  380. 
St.  Anthony,  183. 
"  Star  Papers,"  Beecher's,  325. 
"  State  of  the  Country,"  Hodges's, 

146. 

Stedman,  Mr.,  98. 
Sterling,  John,  273. 
Stevens,  Abel,  116. 
Stiles,  Ezra,  7,  48 ;  Latin  orations 


of,  49;  his  "History  of  the 
Three  Judges,"  49 ;  on  the  Rev 
olution,  52;  writings  of,  53; 
influences  Channing,  193. 

Stillman,  Samuel,  29. 

St.  Johnland,  135. 

St.  Mark's  School,  Southborough, 
92. 

St.  Mary's,  Baltimore,  123. 

Stockton,  T.  H.,  101. 

Stone,  Samuel,  62. 

Storrs,  R.  R.,  311. 

Story,  Judge,  192,  194,  324. 

Stowe,  H.  B.,  127,  304. 

St.  Patrick's  Cathedral,  124. 

St.  Paul's  Church,  Boston,  352. 

Stratford-on-Avon,  325. 

Stuart,  Moses,  35. 

St.  Vitus,  183. 

Suffolk  St.  Chapel,  236. 

Summers,  T.  O.,  101. 

Sumner,  Charles,  150. 

Swing,  David,  119. 

Switzerland,  121,  207. 

Syracuse  University,  116. 

Taylor,  N.  W.,  176. 

Taylor,  Zachary,  250. 

Temple  Church,  London,  364. 

Tennent,  119. 

Tennyson,  Alfred,  380. 

Tennyson,  Hallam,  381. 

Texas,  214,  216. 

Thackeray,  153. 

"  The  Age  of  Homespun,"  Bush- 

nell's,  285. 

The  Analytical  Review,  164. 
"  The  Anarchiad,"  161. 
"  The  Annals  of  America,"  by  A. 

Holmes,  62. 
"The    Annexation    of    Texas," 

Channing's,  220. 
"The     Battle     Set     in    Array,11 

Beecher's,  331. 


398 


INDEX 


"  The  Centralizing  Power  of  the 
Gospel,"  Brooks's,  344. 

The  Christian  Union,  324. 

The  Church  Union,  324. 

"The  Conquered  Banner," 
Ryan's,  95. 

"  The  Conquest  of  Canaan," 
Dwight's,  85,  162,  163,  164. 

"  The  Delphian  Children,"  Low 
ell's,  93. 

The  Dial,  241,  242,  244. 

"The  Elements  of  Intellectual 
Philosophy,"  Wayland's,  145. 

"The  Elements  oi  Moral  Sci 
ence,"  Wayland's,  145. 

"  The  Elements  of  Political 
Economy,"  Wayland's,  145. 

"The  Evening  Hymn,"  Parker's, 
265. 

"  The  Evidences  of  Christianity," 
Mark  Hopkins's,  152. 

"  The  Foresters,"  Belknap's,  56. 

"  The  Founders  Great  in  their  Un 
consciousness,"  Bushnell's,  286. 

"  The  History  of  Cambridge,"  A. 
Holmes's,  62. 

"  The  History  of  Napoleon,"  Ab 
bott's,  75. 

The  Independent,  325. 

"The  Influence  of  Jesus," 
Brooks's,  369-373. 

"  The  Last  Irish  Grievance," 
Thackeray,  154. 

The  Ledger,  326. 

"The  Life  and  Death  of  Abra 
ham  Lincoln,"  Brooks's,  346, 

349-35°- 

The  Louvre,  325. 

The  Massachusetts  Quarterly 
Review,  243,  244. 

"The  Moral  Argument  against 
Calvinism,"  Channing's,  201. 

"The  Mother  at  Home,"  Ab 
bott's,  72. 


"The  Nation,"  Mulford's,  149. 
"The  National  Flag,"  Beecher's, 

332. 
The  National  Gallery,  London, 

325. 

"The  New  Crime  against  Hu 
manity,"  Parker's,  256. 

"The  New  Priest  of  Conception 
Bay,"  Lowell's,  92. 

"  The  Painter's  Probation,"  Low 
ell's,  93. 

"The  Purposes  of  Scholarship," 
Brooks's,  374. 

"The  Relief  of  Lucknow,"  Low 
ell's,  93. 

"The  Republic  of  God,"  Mul 
ford's,  149. 

"  The  Sword  of  Lee,"  Ryan's,  95. 

"The  Transient  and  Permanent 
in  Christianity,"  Parker's,  236. 

The  Tribune,  245. 

"The  Triumph  of  Infidelity," 
Dwight's,  167. 

"  The  Waiting  City,"  Brooks's, 
366. 

Thiers,  273. 

Tholuck,  245. 

Thomson,  W.  P.,  119. 

Thurston,  Father,  193. 

Ticonderoga,  19,  284. 

Tiffany,  309. 

Tillotson,  45. 

Titian,  107. 

Transcendentalism,  101, 103,  241. 

"  Travels  in  New  England," 
Dwight's,  185. 

Trappist  monks,  124. 

Tremont  House,  Boston,  241. 

Trinity  Church,  Boston,  22,  342, 

385. 

Trinity  Church,  New  York,  352. 
Trumbull,  John,  161. 
Tubingen  School,  234. 
Tyler,  M.  C.,  178. 


INDEX 


399 


Union  College,  27,  92, 133, 

Union  Theological  Seminary,  100, 
120,  121. 

Unitarians,  44;  hymns  of,  101 ; 
defended  by  Judd,  103 ;  writers 
of,  113;  attacked  by  Lyman 
Beecher,  126  ;  in  American 
letters,  128;  controversies  of, 
227;  Parker  and,  234;  clergy 
of,  236;  development  among, 
236;  literature  of,  244;  Bush- 
nell  and,  292. 

Universalists,  43 ;  hymns  of,  101, 
102  ;  Ballou's  influence  on, 
141 ;  church  of,  144. 

University  of  Pennsylvania,  132, 

134- 
University  of  Rochester,  117. 

Vassar  College,  117. 

Venice,  264. 

Venus  de  Medici,  264. 

Venus  of  Milo,  264. 

Versailles,  336. 

"  Vicarious  Sacrifice,"  Bushnell's, 

298,  300. 

Vigilance  Committee,  253,  254. 
"  Vindication  of  Slavery,"  Hop- 

kins's,  134. 

Virginia,  255,  256,  258. 
Voltaire,  21,  168. 

Wadsworth  House,  376. 

"  War,"  Channing's,  224. 

Ward,  Nathaniel,  40. 

Ware,  Jr.,  Henry,  101. 

Ware,  William,  novels  of,  102; 

on  Allston,   107  ;    writings  of, 

106-109. 

War  of  1812,  14,  181,  214. 
Warren,  164,  187. 
Warwick  Castle,  325. 
Washburn,  E.  A.,  101. 
Washington,  George,  16;  Paine 


to,  22, 71 ;  friendship  for  Bishop 
Mead,  133;  friend  of  Dwight, 
159  ;   Dwight  on,  180. 
Waterloo,  181. 
Watts,  Dr.,  175. 

Wayland,  Francis,  7 ;  President 
of  Brown,  117;  a  theologian, 
137  ;  writings  of,  144-146. 

Webster,  Daniel,  at  school,  5; 
to  the  Senate,  34;  love  for  the 
Union,  215;  on  Fugitive  Slave 
Bill,  250. 

Webster,  Ezekiel,  5. 

Weed,  Thurlow,  124. 

Weekly  Mercury,  64. 

Weld,  Rev.  Abijah,  5. 

Wentworth,  Governor,  54. 

Wesleyan  University,  115,  116. 

Western  Farmer  and  Gardener, 
307,  322. 

Westminster  Abbey,  362,  380. 

West  Roxbury,  235,  241,  245. 

West,  Samuel,  19. 

Whalley,  49,  51. 

"What  Can  She  Do?"  Roe's, 
in. 

White  Plains,  19. 

White,  William,  48;  chaplain  of 
Congress,  17;  writes  "Me 
moirs,"  67;  a  bishop,  69,  70; 
an  organizer,  132. 

Whittier,  J.  G.,  41 ;  his  poem  on 
Mulford,  150;  opinion  of  Dr. 
Hopkins,  139. 

Wigglesworth,  Michael,  40. 

William  and  Mary  College, 6,  221. 

Williams  College,  no,  151. 

Wilson,  Dr.,  305. 

Winchester,  E.,  141. 

Windsor  Castle,  384. 

Witherspoon,  John,  119,  120. 

Woman's  suffrage,  287. 

Woolman,  John,  41. 

Wordsworth,  207. 


INDEX 


Yale  College,  6 ;  students  in,  21 ; 
sermons  on  duelling  at,  25 ; 
Stiles  at,  48 ;  Franklin  visits, 
49;  Stiles,  president  of,  52; 
Porter, presidentof,  127;  Dwight 
at,  165, 175 ;  Federalist  opinion 


in,  181 ;  Bushnell's  influence  at, 
270 ;  Bushnell's  oration  at,  293, 
297;  Beecher  lectures  at,  317; 
Phillips  Brooks  lectures  at,  356. 

'  Zenobia,"  Ware's,  108. 


Of    TKjtt  'V 

EHSITT  ) 


NATIONAL   STUDIES   IN   AMERI 
CAN  LETTERS 


Old  Cambridge 

BY 

THOMAS  WENTWORTH  HIGGINSON 
Cloth.     12mo.     Price  $1.25 


"...  Some  charmingly  reminiscent  pages,  having  for  their  sub 
ject  the  three  authors  most  widely  associated  with  Old  Cambridge,— 
Holmes,  Longfellow,  and  Lowell ;  and  their  pleasant  gossip  makes 
up  the  major  part  of  the  volume,  which  is  altogether  a  most  enjoya 
ble  and  valuable  one."  —  Philadelphia  Evening  Telegraph. 

"  It  is  just  the  sort  of  book  that  one  would  expect  from  the  author, 
graceful  in  form,  abounding  in  the  genuine  atmosphere  of  the  old 
university  town,  full  of  pleasant  personal  anecdotes  and  reminis 
cences  of  the  Cambridge  of  forty  or  fifty  years  ago.  Many  great 
figures  pass  across  the  stage,  with  nearly  all  of  whom  Colonel  Hig- 
ginson  was  personally  acquainted ;  and  this  intimacy  gives  the  book 
a  charming  flavor."  —  Brooklyn  Life. 

"  The  book  contains  material  to  be  had  nowhere  else,  for  it  is  a 
commentary  on  the  side  history  of  a  great  epoch  in  American  letters, 
written  by  one  who  had  a  place  in  it."  —  San  Francisco  Argonaut. 

"  What  he  has  to  tell  will  be  interesting  to  every  person  who  honors 
New  England  and  sets  store  by  her  literature.  The  book  is  steeped 
in  the  Attic  dew  of  which  the  Cambridge  cicadas  were  fond ;  it  has 
a  smack  of  ambrosia,  —  American  ambrosia,  —  and  its  leaves  rustle 
with  the  unmistakable  Parnassian  suggestion  —  a  Puritan  Parnassus 
to  be  sure.  .  .  .  The  Cambridge  he  dwells  upon  is  the  Cambridge 
of  the  Boston  circle  of  poets,  philosophers,  politicians,  reformers, 
scholars,  statesmen,  preachers,  and  divine  cranks.  He  sketches 
everything  and  everybody  freely,  swiftly,  and  lightly."  —  Independent. 


THE   MACMILLAN   COMPANY 

66  FIFTH  AVENUE,  NEW  YORK 


Brook  Farm 

ITS  MEMBERS,    SCHOLARS,   AND    VISITORS 

By  LINDSAY  SWIFT 
Cloth.     16mo.    Price  $1.25 


CONTENTS 

THE  TRANSCENDENTAL  CLUB  —  BROOK  FARM  —  THE 
SCHOOL  AND  ITS  SCHOLARS  —  THE  MEMBERS  —  THE 
VISITORS  —  THE  CLOSING  PERIOD  —  BIBLIOGRAPHY  — 
INDEX 

"Mr.  Swift  .  .  .  deals  with  the  experimenters  rather 
than  with  the  experiments  .  .  .  and  with  the  influence  of 
the  life  at  Brook  Farm  upon  the  individuality  of  its  mem 
bers."  —  The  Mail  and  Express. 

"  Mr.  Lindsay  Swift  takes  up  and  describes  very  amply 
the  most  romantic,  interesting,  and  far-reaching  movement 
in  the  history  of  American  literature  —  the  story  of  Brook 
Farm.11  —  Times  Saturday  Review. 

"The  book  has  a  value  apart  from  its  delineation  of 
Brook  Farm.  ...  It  ought  to  be  widely  and  carefully 
read,  especially  where  .  .  .  socialistic  notions  are  gaining 
many  adherents,  for  it  will  aid  the  young  enthusiast  to  de 
fine  what  may  be  and  what  cannot  be  for  a  very  long 
century  at  least."  —  The  Outlook. 


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